title: Dispersal of marine benthic invertebrates through ice rafting.
abstract: Knowledge of dispersal vectors used by organisms is essential to the understanding of population and community dynamics. We report on ice rafting, a vector by which intertidal benthic invertebrates can be transported well outside their normal dispersal range during winter in temperate climates. We found multiple invertebrate taxa in sediment-laden ice blocks sampled in the intertidal zone. A large proportion of individuals were alive and active when freed from the ice. Using radio tracking, we found that ice blocks can travel over 20 km within a few days. Given the abundance of highly mobile ice blocks carrying viable invertebrates, we conclude that ice-rafting is likely an important dispersal vector, contributing to spatial community dynamics in intertidal systems. This mechanism helps explain observed genetic structure of populations, but it also raises concerns about potential negative impacts of climate change on connectivity between populations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Mount Allison University, 63B York Street, Sackville, New Brunswick E4L 1G7, Canada.
authors.forename: Colin B A
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Macfarlane
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Drolet
authors.forename: Myriam A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Barbeau
authors.forename: Diana J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.forename: Jeff
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ollerhead
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001267:Atlantic Ocean; D003710:Demography; D017753:Ecosystem; D007053:Ice; D007448:Invertebrates / Q000502:physiology*; D009509:New Brunswick; D009674:Nova Scotia; D009792:Oceans and Seas
chemical_list: D007053:Ice