Dispersal of echinoderm larvae in a geographical area marked by upwelling (Ligurian Sea, NW Mediterranean)

A spatio-temporal survey of some echinoderm larvae was conducted along a transect of 28 nautical miles from the Bay of Villefranche, France, halfway to Corsica. Distribution patterns and mechanisms responsible for larval dispersal, viz. water currents, hydroclimate and vertical movements, were studi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology. Progress series (Halstenbek) 1992, Vol.86 (3), p.217-227
Main Authors: Pedrotti, Maria Luiza, Fenaux, Lucienne
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amphiura filiformis
Arbacia lixula
Coasts
Earth Sciences
Echinocardium flavescens
Echinodermata
Echinoderms
Ecology
Environmental Sciences & Ecology
Hydrology
Larvae
Larval development
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Marine
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Ocean currents
Oceanography
Paracentrotus lividus
Physical Sciences
Salinity
Salpa fusiformis
Science & Technology
Sciences of the Universe
Seas
Surface water
Zooplankton
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Summary:A spatio-temporal survey of some echinoderm larvae was conducted along a transect of 28 nautical miles from the Bay of Villefranche, France, halfway to Corsica. Distribution patterns and mechanisms responsible for larval dispersal, viz. water currents, hydroclimate and vertical movements, were studied. The echinoderm larvae exhibited weak vertical migration (a few meters), remaining in the surface layer. They are therefore subjected to hydrodynamic constraints which either limit or promote dispersal away from the nursery beds. Larval concentration decreased with distance from the coast and was generally restricted to within 16 miles of the coast. This distance coincided with the location of a coastal divergence zone where rising subsurface waters confined larvae to the Ligurian Current.
ISSN:0171-8630
1616-1599
DOI:10.3354/meps086217