engleski

Does Change in an Adriatic Hydromedusan Fauna Indicate an Early Phase of Marine Ecosystem Destruction?

The most problems in the human efforts to combat consequences of pollution are dealing with identification of initial phases of ecosystem disturbances. Investigation of hydrographic properties and medusan composition in the Northern Adriatic region in 1992-1997 period showed persistence of hypoxic conditions and low number of meroplanktonic hydromedusae. Changes in the hydromedusan fauna demonstrate one aspect of the long-term consequences of oxygen deficiencies in marine ecosystems: decreased biodiversity. We suggest that species composition of meroplanktonic hydromedusae may be useful indicator of the early phase of such changes.

Hydrozoa; Cnidaria; medusae; marine ecosystem destruction; oxygen; biodiversity

nije evidentirano