Does the benthic invertebrate community reflect disturbances in the central Indian River Lagoon?

The Indian River Lagoon (IRL) is home to numerous species of plants and animals, including sessile benthic invertebrates. In addition to being an important component of the ecosystem, sessile benthic organisms may be of use to detect disturbances within the lagoon. This paper presents data from a long-term monitoring program of benthic invertebrate communities at a test site in the central lagoon since 2008. Over this time, these organisms endured the declining health of the IRL along with natural disturbances (i.e., cold snaps, algal blooms, tropical cyclones). Seasonal community composition was similar to what has previously been recorded, indicating that the health of the lagoon has not caused any long-term damage to benthic invertebrate community. However significant impacts were observed with barnacle and encrusting bryozoan cover as a result of various disturbances. Of the three types of disturbances investigated, the cold snap had no effect, the hurricane only had short-term impacts (weeks) and algal blooms had short- and long-term (months) impacts. Barnacle cover was severely reduced by algal blooms and at the same time the encrusting bryozoan cover increased. As algal blooms and anthropogenic disturbances become more frequent in the IRL, barnacles and encrusting bryozoans may be used as an indicator taxa for decreases in habitat quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]