Biodiversity Data Journal :
Data Paper (Biosciences)
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Corresponding author:
Academic editor: Eva Chatzinikolaou
Received: 13 Jun 2016 | Accepted: 31 Oct 2016 | Published: 01 Nov 2016
© 2016 Athanasios Evagelopoulos, Drosos Koutsoubas, Vasilis Gerovasileiou, Nikolaos Katsiaras
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Evagelopoulos A, Koutsoubas D, Gerovasileiou V, Katsiaras N (2016) Macrobenthic molluscs from a marine - lagoonal environmental transition in Lesvos Island (Greece). Biodiversity Data Journal 4: e9541. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.4.e9541
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This paper describes an occurence dataset, also including numerical abundance and biomass data, pertaining to the macrobenthic molluscan assemblages from a marine - lagoonal environmental transition. The study system was the soft-substrate benthoscape of the area of the Kalloni solar saltworks (Lesvos Island, Greece). Specifically, the study area extended from the infralittoral zone of the inner Kalloni Gulf (marine habitat) to the bottoms of the first two evaporation ponds of the Kalloni solar saltworks (lagoonal habitat). Bottom sediment samples (3 replicates) were collected with a Van Veen grab sampler (0.1 m2) at four sampling sites, along a 1.5 km long line transect that spanned the marine - lagoonal environmental transition. A total of four surveys were carried out seasonally in 2004. A total of 39,345 molluscan individuals were sorted out of the sediment samples and were identified to 71 species, belonging to the Gastropoda (36), Bivalvia (34) and Scaphopoda (1) classes. Numerical abundance and wet biomass (with shells) data are included in the dataset.
The dataset described in the present paper partially fills a significant gap in the scientific literature: Because ecological research of coastal lagoons has seldom explicitly considered the marine - lagoonal habitats interface, there are no openly accessible datasets pertaining to the particular structural component of the transitional waters benthoscapes of the Mediterranean Sea. Such datasets could prove valuable in the research of the structure and functioning of transitional waters benthoscapes. The present dataset is available as a supplementary file (Suppl. material
biodiversity, environmental stress gradient, confinement gradient, transitional waters, coastal lagoons, solar saltworks
Transitional waters (e.g. estuaries, coastal lagoons) may be considered as "ecotone ecosystems" that structurally and functionally link marine, continental and freshwater ecosystems along the coastline (
Macrobenthic invertebrates are considered as a key group among the biota in all coastal aquatic ecosystems (
This paper describes an occurence dataset, also including numerical abundance and biomass data, pertaining to the macrobenthic molluscan assemblages from the marine - lagoonal environmental transition at the area of Kalloni solar saltworks (Lesvos Island, Greece). The present dataset paper partially fills a significant gap in the scientific literature, as no openly accessible datasets from case studies of marine - lagoonal habitats interfaces have been published thus far and such datasets could prove valuable in the research of the structure and functioning of transitional waters benthoscapes.
This dataset was assembled in the framework of the PhD thesis of Dr. Athanasios Evagelopoulos (Department of Marine Sciences, University of the Aegean, Greece) (
Macrobenthic molluscs from the marine-lagoonal environmental transition at the area of Kalloni saltworks (Lesvos Island, Greece).
Drosos Koutsoubas (PhD thesis supervisor, sample collection, taxonomic identification), Athanasios Evagelopoulos (sample collection, taxonomic identification, data management), Vasilis Gerovasileiou (sample collection, laboratory analysis), Nikolaos Katsiaras (sample collection, laboratory analysis), Andreas Alifragkis (sample collection, laboratory analysis), Ioannis Vasiliadis (sample collection, laboratory analysis), Asimenia Kostidou (sample collection).
A detailed description of the study area is provided by
This dataset was assembled in the framework of the PhD thesis of Dr. Athanasios Evagelopoulos, which was supported by a PhD scholarship from HERACLITUS: Research scholarships with priority in basic research (2nd Operational Programme for Education and Initial Vocational Training, 3rd CSF) that was funded by the Greek Ministry of Education and co-funded by the ESF (EU).
Authoring of the present data paper and data management and upload to the MedOBIS IPT were supported by the LifeWatchGreece infrastructure (MIS 384676), funded by the Greek Government under the General Secretariat of Research and Technology (GSRT), National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF).
The study area (Fig.
Sampling site | Site description | Latitude (DD) | Longitude (DD) |
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1 | Kalloni Gulf | 39.204974 | 26.250093 |
2 | Inlet channel | 39.207020 | 26.251612 |
3 | Pond 1 | 39.209713 | 26.253069 |
4 | Pond 2 | 39.208540 | 26.258517 |
The field and laboratory methodology used followed the one described by
After their collection, the sediment samples were washed on-site through a 0.5 mm mesh sieve and subsequently fixed with 5% formalin and stained with Rose Bengal. In the laboratory, the macrobenthic invertebrates were sorted out of the sediment, and classified first into families and then into species. The individuals of each species in each sample were enumerated and their total wet weight (with shells) was measured with a high precision (0.1 mg) balance. During the data management process, the species names were checked with WoRMS, the dataset was prepared according to the Darwin Core standard and, finally, the data were uploaded to the MedOBIS IPT.
The geographic coverage of the dataset extends from the part of the inner Kalloni Gulf that is adjacent to the Kalloni solar saltworks to the first two evaporation ponds of the saltworks. A map of the study area is given in Fig.
39.2 and 39.22 Latitude; 26.23 and 26.27 Longitude.
The taxonomic coverage of the dataset is limited to the molluscan assemblages of the study area. Specifically, the dataset includes gastropod, bivalve and scaphopod species. A list of the species included in the dataset, also indicating their taxonomic classification, is given in Table
List of species included in the dataset, indicating their taxonomic classification.
Scientific name | Authority | Class | Family |
Abra segmentum | (Récluz, 1843) | Bivalvia | Semelidae |
Axinulus croulinensis | (Jeffreys, 1847) | Bivalvia | Thyasiridae |
Cerastoderma glaucum | (Bruguière, 1789) | Bivalvia | Cardiidae |
Chamelea gallina | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Clausinella fasciata | (da Costa, 1778) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Corbula gibba | (Olivi, 1792) | Bivalvia | Corbulidae |
Ctena decussata | (O. G. Costa, 1829) | Bivalvia | Lucinidae |
Lucinella divaricata | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Bivalvia | Lucinidae |
Donacilla cornea | (Poli, 1791) | Bivalvia | Mesodesmatidae |
Donax venustus | Poli, 1795 | Bivalvia | Donacidae |
Gouldia minima | (Montagu, 1803) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Irus irus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Loripes lucinalis | (Lamarck, 1818) | Bivalvia | Lucinidae |
Loripinus fragilis | (Philippi, 1836) | Bivalvia | Lucinidae |
Gibbomodiola adriatica | (Lamarck, 1819) | Bivalvia | Mytilidae |
Modiolus barbatus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Bivalvia | Mytilidae |
Montacuta substriata | (Montagu, 1808) | Bivalvia | Montacutidae |
Musculus sp. | Röding, 1798 | Bivalvia | Mytilidae |
Myrtea spinifera | (Montagu, 1803) | Bivalvia | Lucinidae |
Kurtiella bidentata | (Montagu, 1803) | Bivalvia | Montacutidae |
Parvicardium exiguum | (Gmelin, 1791) | Bivalvia | Cardiidae |
Pholas dactylus | Linnaeus, 1758 | Bivalvia | Pholadidae |
Pitar rudis | (Poli, 1795) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Solen marginatus | Pulteney, 1799 | Bivalvia | Solenidae |
Polititapes aureus | (Gmelin, 1791) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Ruditapes decussatus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Moerella donacina | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Bivalvia | Tellinidae |
Tellina planata | Linnaeus, 1758 | Bivalvia | Tellinidae |
Tellina sp. | Linnaeus, 1758 | Bivalvia | Tellinidae |
Tellina tenuis | da Costa, 1778 | Bivalvia | Tellinidae |
Thracia phaseolina | (Lamarck, 1818) | Bivalvia | Thraciidae |
Thyasira flexuosa | (Montagu, 1803) | Bivalvia | Thyasiridae |
Timoclea ovata | (Pennant, 1777) | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Venus casina | Linnaeus, 1758 | Bivalvia | Veneridae |
Acteon tornatilis | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Acteonidae |
Barleeia unifasciata | (Montagu, 1803) | Gastropoda | Barleeiidae |
Bela nebula | (Montagu, 1803) | Gastropoda | Mangeliidae |
Bittium reticulatum | (da Costa, 1778) | Gastropoda | Cerithiidae |
Cerithiopsis sp. | Forbes & Hanley, 1850 | Gastropoda | Cerithiopsidae |
Cerithiopsis tubercularis | (Montagu, 1803) | Gastropoda | Cerithiopsidae |
Cerithium vulgatum | Bruguière, 1792 | Gastropoda | Cerithiidae |
Chrysallida sp. | Carpenter, 1856 | Gastropoda | Pyramidellidae |
Circulus sp. | Jeffreys, 1865 | Gastropoda | Tornidae |
Cyclope neritea | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Nassariidae |
Ebala pointeli | (de Folin, 1868) | Gastropoda | Pyramidellidae |
Epitonium clathrus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Epitoniidae |
Gibbula albida | (Gmelin, 1791) | Gastropoda | Trochidae |
Gibbula ardens | (Salis Marschlins, 1793) | Gastropoda | Trochidae |
Hydrobia acuta | (Draparnaud, 1805) | Gastropoda | Hydrobiidae |
Mangelia attenuata | (Montagu, 1803) | Gastropoda | Mangeliidae |
Nassarius incrassatus | (Strøm, 1768) | Gastropoda | Nassariidae |
Megastomia conoidea | (Brocchi, 1814) | Gastropoda | Pyramidellidae |
Potamides conicus | (Blainville, 1829) | Gastropoda | Potamididae |
Pusillina marginata | (Michaud, 1830) | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Pusillina radiata | (Philippi, 1836) | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Raphitoma echinata | (Brocchi, 1814) | Gastropoda | Raphitomidae |
Rissoa guerinii | Récluz, 1843 | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Rissoa monodonta | Philippi, 1836 | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Rissoa membranacea | (J. Adams, 1800) | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Rissoa lia | (Monterosato, 1884) | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Rissoa splendida | Eichwald, 1830 | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Rissoa variabilis | (Von Mühlfeldt, 1824) | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Rissoa ventricosa | Desmarest, 1814 | Gastropoda | Rissoidae |
Tricolia pullus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Phasianellidae |
Monophorus perversus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Triphoridae |
Trophonopsis muricata | (Montagu, 1803) | Gastropoda | Muricidae |
Truncatella subcylindrica | (Linnaeus, 1767) | Gastropoda | Truncatellidae |
Turbonilla delicata | Monterosato, 1874 | Gastropoda | Pyramidellidae |
Turbonilla lactea | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Pyramidellidae |
Pyrgostylus striatulus | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gastropoda | Pyramidellidae |
Fustiaria rubescens | (Deshayes, 1825) | Scaphopoda | Fustiariidae |
The distribution of species number in the bivalve and gastropod families is presented in Fig.
Rank | Scientific Name | Common Name |
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phylum | Mollusca | Molluscs |
class | Gastropoda | Gastropods |
class | Bivalvia | Bivalves |
class | Scaphopoda | Tusk shells |
The dataset has a temporal coverage of one year (2004): The surveys were seasonal and carried out in Winter (24/2), Spring (28/5), Summer (17/9) and Autumn (27/11).
The dataset includes two files: Events and Occurences. The former contains the information on the sampling design, whereas the latter contains primarily the species abundance, biomass and taxonomy information.
Column label | Column description |
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eventID | An identifier for the set of information associated with an Event (something that occurs at a place and time). |
samplingProtocol | The name of, reference to, or description of the method or protocol used during an Event. |
sampleSizeValue | A numeric value for a measurement of the size (time duration, length, area, or volume) of a sample in a sampling event. |
sampleSizeUnit | The unit of measurement of the size (time duration, length, area, or volume) of a sample in a sampling event. |
eventDate | The date-time or interval during which an Event occurred. |
year | The four-digit year in which the Event occurred, according to the Common Era Calendar. |
month | The ordinal month in which the Event occurred. |
day | The integer day of the month on which the Event occurred. |
habitat | A category or description of the habitat in which the Event occurred. |
fieldNumber | An identifier given to the event in the field. |
locationID | An identifier for the set of location information. |
locality | The specific description of the place. |
minimumDepthInMeters | The lesser depth of a range of depth below the local surface, in meters. |
maximumDepthInMeters | The greater depth of a range of depth below the local surface, in meters. |
locationRemarks | Comments or notes about the Location. |
decimalLatitude | The geographic latitude (in decimal degrees, using the spatial reference system given in geodeticDatum) of the geographic center of a Location. Positive values are north of the Equator, negative values are south of it. |
decimalLongitude | The geographic longitude (in decimal degrees, using the spatial reference system given in geodeticDatum) of the geographic center of a Location. Positive values are east of the Greenwich Meridian, negative values are west of it. |
coordinateUncertaintyInMeters | The horizontal distance (in meters) from the given decimalLatitude and decimalLongitude describing the smallest circle containing the whole of the Location. |
institutionCode | The name (or acronym) in use by the institution having custody of the object(s) or information referred to in the record. |
collectionCode | The name, acronym, coden, or initialism identifying the collection or data set from which the record was derived. |
basisOfRecord | The specific nature of the data record. |
occurenceID | An identifier for the Occurrence. |
catalogNumber | An identifier for the record within the data set or collection. |
individualCount | The number of individuals represented present at the time of the Occurrence. |
organismQuantity | A number or enumeration value for the quantity of organisms. |
organismQuantityType | The type of quantification system used for the quantity of organisms. |
lifeStage | The age class or life stage of the biological individual(s) at the time the Occurrence was recorded. |
identifiedBy | A list (concatenated and separated) of names of people, groups, or organizations who assigned the Taxon to the subject. |
scientificNameID | An identifier for the nomenclatural (not taxonomic) details of a scientific name. |
scientificName | The full scientific name, with authorship and date information if known. |
kingdom | The full scientific name of the kingdom in which the taxon is classified. |
phylum | The full scientific name of the phylum or division in which the taxon is classified. |
class | The full scientific name of the class in which the taxon is classified. |
order | The full scientific name of the order in which the taxon is classified. |
family | The full scientific name of the family in which the taxon is classified. |
genus | The full scientific name of the family in which the taxon is classified. |
subgenus | The full scientific name of the subgenus in which the taxon is classified. |
specificEpithet | The name of the first or species epithet of the scientificName. |
scientificNameAuthorship | The authorship information for the scientificName formatted according to the conventions of the applicable nomenclaturalCode. |
nomenclaturalCode | The nomenclatural code (or codes in the case of an ambiregnal name) under which the scientificName is constructed. |
taxonRemarks | Comments or notes about the taxon or name. |
Evagelopoulos A (2015): Spatial and seasonal variability of the molluscan macrofauna at the marine-lagoonal environmental gradient at Kalloni saltworks (Lesvos Island, NE Aegean Sea, Greece). v1.7. Hellenic Center for Marine Research. Dataset/Samplingevent. http://ipt.medobis.eu/resource?r=kalloni_saltworks_phd&v=1.7
The contributions of the most important species in the mean total abundance (ind./sample) for each site and seasonal survey are given in Fig.
Contributions of the most important species in the mean total abundance (ind./sample) for each site (1, 2, 3, 4) and seasonal survey (WI: winter, SP: spring, SU: summer, AU: autumn).
The most important species in terms of abundance were selected as the ones contributing in at least 10% of the total mean abundance in a dataset sample.
The most important species in terms of abundanceduring all surveys, were the cerithiid gastropod Bittium reticulatum at site 2 and the mud snail Hydrobia acuta at sites 3 and 4.
The contributions of the most important species in the mean total biomass (g/sample) for each site and seasonal survey are presented in Fig.
Contributions of the most important species in the mean total biomass (g/sample) for each site (1, 2, 3, 4) and seasonal survey (WI: winter, SP: spring, SU: summer, AU: autumn) .
The most important species in terms of biomass were selected as the ones contributing in at least 10% of the total mean biomass in a dataset sample.
In terms of biomass, the most important species at site 2 was, during all surveys, the cerithiid gastropod Bittium reticulatum, whereas the most important species at sites 3 and 4 were, during all surveys, the bivalves Abra segmentum and Cerastoderma glaucum and the gastropods Cyclope neritea and Potamides conicus.
The spatial variability of the observed species diversity and eveness during each seasonal survey are given in Figs
Observed species diversity was measured with the Hill numbers (
The maximum observed species richness (N0 index) was measured either at site 1, 2 or 3, depending on the season, whereas the minimum was invariably measured at site 4. The minimum observed diversity (N1, N2 indices) was invariably recorded at site 2, due to the minimum of eveness measured therein (F2/1 index).
The authors would like to thank Dimitra Mavraki and Matina Nikolopoulou of the LifeWatchGreece Core Team for their assistance in the data management and the upload of the dataset to the MedOBIS IPT.
Athanasios Evagelopoulos participated in the fieldwork, taxonomic identification, carried out the data management, uploaded the dataset to the MedOBIS IPT and authored the data paper. Drosos Koutsoubas participated in the fieldwork and taxonomic identification of the molluscan species. Vasilis Gerovasileiou and Nikolaos Katsiaras participated in the fieldwork and the laboratory analysis.
The dataset file includes the abundance (ind./sample), wet biomass with shells (g/sample) and taxonomic classification of the species in each sample.