Parallel changes of Limecola (Macoma) balthica populations in the Dutch Wadden Sea

ABSTRACT: Long-term (>40 yr, started in the 1970s) data series of Limecola (Macoma) balthica dynamics in 4 distant (>100 km) areas of the Dutch Wadden Sea are described and compared, including annual recruitment, total abundance, age composition (recruits/adults) and adult survival. The aim was to determine to what extent long-term changes in L. balthica population attributes were synchronous in populations throughout the Dutch Wadden Sea and to identify possible underlying causes. At all 4 sites studied, changes in annual recruitment (n m-2 of spat-sized animals in summer) was synchrono... Mehr ...