A new analytical approach to the characterisation of macro-epibenthic habitats: linking species to the environment

A challenge for marine ecologists is to explain distinct and recurrent patterns in the distribution of marine faunas by developing new methods that identify and link environmental processes responsible for these patterns. Methods that describe and predict the distribution of benthic faunas using single factors such as sediment type or water depth are generally inadequate, particularly when applied on a broad scale. When a combination of factors such as near-bed tidal velocity, surface seawater temperature and salinity are evaluated in conjunction with sediment type and depth, however, they more clearly characterise benthic habitats. Using principal component analysis (PCA) patterns in the distribution and abundance of different echinoderm and crustacean species were shown to be predictable and characterised by a suite of physical factors. Characterising benthic habitats using factors from the environment provided a potential mechanism for predicting patterns in their spatial distribution. A new analytical method for characterising a species habitat was constructed using a combination of PCA and a generalised additive model. The method is able to predict the habitat preferences of individual species based on their association with physical factors characterising their habitat. These preferences were then used to describe the probability of a species occurring across a range of different habitats, which is referred to as the habitat-envelope. This method enables one species habitat range to be compared directly to another. The strong correlation between species patchiness and its habitat-envelope was used to develop an index to identify species that are potentially more sensitive to habitat change. Distinct patterns in the habitat preferences of echinoderms were generally stronger than those identified for crustaceans. Thus, crustaceans were found more likely to exploit a wider range of habitats than echinoderms, suggesting that they may be less sensitive to habitat change.