Laboratoire de Biodiversité Marine et Environnement, Faculté des Sciences de Sfax, Université de Sfax, BP 1171, 3038, Sfax, Tunisia.
National School of Engineers of Sfax, Water, Energy and Environment Laboratory L3E, University of Sfax, BP 1173, 3038 Sfax, Tunisia.
Environ Pollut. 2019 Oct;253:474-487. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.06.080. Epub 2019 Jul 6.
Anthropogenic activities including coastal industries, urbanization, extensive agriculture and aquaculture as well as their cumulative impacts represent major sources of perturbation of marine coastal systems. Macrobenthic communities are useful ecological indicators for monitoring the health status of marine environments (or polluted environments). The present study reports, for the first time, the response of benthic macrofauna sampled during two years survey (2015-2016) to multiple anthropogenic pressures on the coastal zone south of Sfax (Tunisia). A total of 12 stations were monitored seasonally at locations downstream from the main potential sources of disturbance. 106 macrobenthos taxa, belonging to six animal phyla and 70 families, were identified with a dominance of polychaetes (42%), crustaceans (35%) and molluscs (18%). We used an ANOVA test and cluster analysis to identify spatial gradient linked to environmental and anthropogenic factors, including depth, sedimentary texture and anthropogenic activities (i.e. phosphogypsum discharges).The macrofauna present lowest species number and abundance on stations undergoing anthropogenic inputs, which are extremely polluted by heavy metals (Cd, Cu, F and N) and excess of organic matter. Univariate parameters reveal a general trend of increasing species diversity with increasing distance from the pollution source. The polluted stations are strongly dominated by carnivores, and selective deposit feeders, and more closely linked to the availability of trophic resources than to anthropogenic constraints. The seasonal changes in macrobenthic abundance, diversity indices and community structure are mainly linked to the biological cycle (e.g. recruitment events) of the dominant species. Biotic indices (AMBI and BO2A) classified the coastal zone south of Sfax as moderate and good ecological status. This study suggests that initiating a long-term monitoring programme would improve our understanding of the temporal changes of macrobenthic communities of this ecosystem, contributing to the assessment of effective management and conservation measures in this disturbed area.
人为活动包括沿海工业、城市化、大规模农业和水产养殖以及它们的累积影响，是海洋沿海系统受到干扰的主要来源。底栖大型动物群落是监测海洋环境（或受污染环境）健康状况的有用生态指标。本研究首次报告了两年（2015-2016 年）调查期间，在突尼斯斯法克斯南部沿海地区，底栖大型动物对多种人为压力的响应。总共监测了 12 个站位，这些站位位于主要干扰源的下游。共鉴定出 106 种底栖大型动物，分属六个动物门和 70 个科，其中多毛类（42%）、甲壳类（35%）和软体动物（18%）占优势。我们使用方差分析和聚类分析来识别与环境和人为因素（即磷石膏排放）相关的空间梯度。在受到人为输入影响的站位上，底栖大型动物的物种数量和丰度最低，这些站位受到重金属（Cd、Cu、F 和 N）和有机物过量的严重污染。单变量参数显示，随着与污染源距离的增加，物种多样性呈增加趋势。受污染的站位主要由肉食动物和选择性沉积物食者主导，与营养资源的可利用性比与人为限制更密切相关。底栖大型动物丰度、多样性指数和群落结构的季节性变化主要与优势种的生物周期（如繁殖事件）有关。生物指数（AMBI 和 BO2A）将斯法克斯南部沿海地区归类为中等到良好的生态状况。本研究表明，启动长期监测计划将有助于我们了解该生态系统底栖大型动物群落的时间变化，有助于评估在受干扰地区采取有效的管理和保护措施。
