Global ecosystem typology

Alternative site for the Global ecosystem typology with additional information for ecosystem profiles and indicative maps.

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M1.7 Subtidal sand beds

Biome: M1. Marine shelf biome

Contributors:
(texts)

These relatively unstable shelf ecosystems in turbulent waters support moderately diverse communities made up largely of consumers, like invertebrate detritivores and filter-feeders, including burrowing polychaetes, crustaceans, echinoderms, and molluscs. Filter feeders are most common in higher energy areas of currents and wave action. Primary producers are limited by substrate instability or light, with seagrass ecosystems (M1.1) occurring where these factors are not limiting to plant establishment and persistence. Low structural habitat complexity means a lack of shelter, and many organisms display predator avoidance traits like burrowing, shells or camouflage (e.g. sole).

Key Features

Medium to coarse-grained soft sediment with burrowing invertebrate detrivores and suspension-feeders mostly relying on allochthonous energy..

Overview of distribution

Continental and island shelves.

Profile versions

  • v1.0 (2020-01-20): BA Polidoro; DA Keith
  • v2.0 (2020-05-27): BA Polidoro; SE Swearer; DA Keith
  • v2.01 ():
  • v2.1 (2022-04-06): BA Polidoro; SE Swearer; DA Keith Full profile available at official site

Main references

Selected references for this functional group:

  • Byers JE, Grabowski JH (2014) Soft-sediment communities Marine community ecology and conservation (Eds. MD Bertness, JF Bruno, BR Silliman, JJ Stachowicz), pp227-249. Sinauer, Sunderland

  • Snelgrove PVR (1999) Getting to the bottom of marine biodiversity: sedimentary habitats Bioscience 49: 129-138 DOI:10.2307/1313538

Diagrammatic assembly model

Diagrammatic assembly model of M1.7 Subtidal sand beds. See general notes on diagrams. Open image full size.

Maps

Maps are indicative of global distribution patterns are not intended to represent fine-scale patterns. The maps show areas of the world containing major (coloured red) or minor occurrences (coloured yellow) of each ecosystem functional group. See general notes on maps.

There are 2 alternative versions of the indicative map for this functional group, please compare description and sources below.

M1.7.IM.orig_v1.0

Datasets

  • GSFM-2014

Map references

  • Harris PT, Macmillan-Lawler M, Rupp J, Baker EK (2014) Geomorphology of the oceans. Marine Geology 352: 4-24. 10.1016/j.margeo.2014.01.011

M1.7.web.orig_v1.0

These are ecosystem functional groups that are widespread through the global extent of the marine shelf biome. Reliable data on their precise distribution are limited. To represent regional uncertainty, their indicative distributions were mapped in as minor occurrences through the full extent of the marine ‘shelf’ base layer as mapped by Harris et al. (2014b). Occurrences were converted to 30 arc second spatial resolution. Open image full size.

Datasets

  • GSFM-2014

Map references

  • Harris PT, Macmillan-Lawler M, Rupp J, Baker EK (2014) Geomorphology of the oceans. Marine Geology 352: 4-24. 10.1016/j.margeo.2014.01.011

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