Suprabenthic crustacean assemblages subjected to high-energy hydrodynamic events in the Blanes Canyon and adjacent slope (NW Mediterranean Sea)

Submarine canyons and adjacent slopes from the NW Mediterranean Sea are subjected to high seasonal and inter-annual variability in hydrodynamic processes. Such an environmental setting has a profound influence in the spatial and temporal variability of deep-sea benthic assemblages. We analyzed the suprabenthic crustacean assemblages from the Blanes Canyon and the adjacent slope along a bathymetric gradient. Macer-Giroq sledge hauls were taken from 900 to 2250 m depth in the canyon axis and southwestern adjacent slope in the autumn of 2008, 2009 and 2012. From the twenty four hauls sampled, one hundred and seventy one species were identified. Major changes in densities, number of species and diversity were only found at particular depths or years. In general the samples yielded variable densities (from approx. 10 to 539 ind.100 m−2), mostly owing to temporal fluctuations in motile fauna such as amphipods and mysids, in relation to the occurrence of energy-driven events. The environmental conditions associated to these events coupled with particular topographic features at the shallowest sites (namely at 900 m depth) lead to contrasting biodiversity patterns in the canyon and adjacent slope: high dominance and subsequent depressed diversity in the canyon and the highest diversity on the slope at similar depths. At the deepest sites, suprabenthic diversity reached similar values in the canyon and adjacent slope, probably owing to the decreased influence of disturbance processes at greater depths. Trophic diversity decreased with depth only in the slope, while in the canyon it remained constant likely owing to the relatively enhanced trophic conditions found in the canyon at all depths. However, the community composition differed significantly between the canyon and adjacent slope and at contrasting depths (<1200 m vs. >1200 m). At shallowest depths, the canyon sites were characterized by a high contribution of motile omnivores while the slope sites were characterized by a high contribution of detritivores to the total abundance. Highly motile predators on zooplankton were dominant at deepest sites in both environments. Our results suggest that taxonomic and trophic diversity in the northwestern Mediterranean may be influenced by the abrupt topography and its interaction with hydrodynamic conditions (intensification of currents; variable intensity of disturbance/hydrodynamic events; food pulses linked to food availability). These are major drivers which influence the spatial and temporal availability of food sources to the various faunal compartments eventually propagating up the food web.