Description of biotope or habitat type
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Calocaris macandreae and polychaetes in offshore circalittoral mud and sandy mud
Physical habitat description
| Salinity | Full (30-35 ppt) |
|---|---|
| Wave exposure | Very sheltered |
| Tidal streams | Week |
| Substratum | Mud, Sandy mud |
| Zone | Circalittoral |
| Depth Band | 50-150 m |
| Other Features |
Biotope origin
| Derived using data from | Day Grab |
| Faunal group | Infauna |
Download comparative physical and biological data. The comparative tables enable a rapid comparison of the species composition and principal physical characteristics between a given set of biotopes.
- Records used to define the biotope (core records)
- Other records assigned to this biotope, marked as 'certain'
- Other records assigned to this biotope, marked as 'uncertain'
- Predicted extent of the level 3 (for sublittoral rock & deep sea) or 4 (for sublittoral sediment) habitat
Point data based on records in the UK Marine Recorder Snapshot. Predicted habitat extent is from UKSeaMap.
Description
Sublittoral mud and sandy mud plains characterised by a wide range of infauna including polychaetes, few crustaceans and molluscs. This biotope has been found in the Irish Sea, the Minches, and Western Scotland. The description of this biotope is based on infauna recorded from the above location but could be found in other areas with similar environmental conditions. The characteristic infaunal species include Calocaris macandreae and polychaetes Glycera unicornis, Mediomastus fragilis, Levinsenia gracilis and oligochaete Tubificoides amplivastus. The other characterising taxa include polychaetes Nephtys incisa, Kirkegaardia dorsbranchialis (previously Monticellina) and bivalve Nucula sulcata. Echinoidean Brissopsis lyrifera, cumacean Eudorella emarginata, and Nephrops norvegicus are also present in small numbers. This biotope was described using Day grab infaunal data and the characterising species listed will partly reflect the method used to collect data.
Situation
No situation data available.
Temporal variation
No temporal data available.
Characterising species
| Taxon | Relative importance of taxon for defining this community (%) | % of core records where taxon was recorded | Relative frequency % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calocaris macandreae | 19 | 1-20% | 5.7 |
| Glycera unicornis | 15 | 1-20% | 6.2 |
| Levinsenia gracilis | 13 | 21-40% | 29.5 |
| Tubificoides amplivasatus | 13 | 1-20% | 9.8 |
| Mediomastus fragilis | 9 | 1-20% | 7.5 |
| Nucula sulcata | 9 | 1-20% | 7.5 |
| Monticellina dorsobranchialis | 9 | 1-20% | 18 |
| Nephtys incisa | 6 | 1-20% | 2.5 |
| Litocorsa stremma | 3 | 1-20% | 2.8 |
| Nemertea | 1 | 1-20% | 0.9 |
Similar biotopes or habitat types
Not applicable or unknown.