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[Hediste diversicolor] and [Macoma balthica] in littoral gravelly mud

Description of [Hediste diversicolor] and [Macoma balthica] in littoral gravelly mud

Identity:

flag A2.4111
creatorIdentity remo
creationTime 2017-08-16T16:38:13.098
Last Maintainer Identity remo
modificationTime 2016-03-16T18:42:49
id 2814
imageSize 0 Bytes

Sheltered gravelly mud shores, subject to reduced salinity. The infaunal community consists of the ragworm Hediste diversicolor, as well as the spire shell Hydrobia ulvae and the baltic tellin Macoma balthica. The presence of the gravel in the sediment is unlikely to have a large influence on the infaunal composition, which is driven mainly by the estuarine sandy mud conditions. Coarse material on the sediment surface may however enrich the biota with additional epifaunal species such as barnacles and algae. Given the low sample numbers for this biotope, more records are needed to confirm the characterising species list. Situation: It is probable that there are broad transition areas between this biotope, and the corresponding muddy sediment biotope, unit A2.312. The boundaries may be very indistinct, with A2.4111 present in patches of gravelly mud on areas of mudflat, where the main biotope is A2.312. This biotope has been found alongside its mud equivalent in the Stour estuary.