title: Trophic structure of polychaetes around an offshore gas platform.
abstract: The distribution of polychaetes associated with an offshore gas platform built on a muddy-sandy bottom in the northern Adriatic Sea was investigated with emphasis on their feeding structure. Polychaete species were collected at different distances from the rig using a Van Veen grab. Assessment of the polychaete community and trophic groups for impacts related to the presence of the platform demonstrated significantly different abundances at rising distances from the rig. The present findings highlight an effect of the rig on the spatial distribution of polychaete assemblages. Even though the effects of gas platforms on surrounding benthic communities have been investigated in the Adriatic Sea, no studies have addressed the distribution of polychaete trophic groups along a gradient based on distance from the rig.
authors.affiliation: National Research Council - Institute of Marine Sciences (CNR-ISMAR), 60125 Ancona, Italy. Electronic address: elisa.punzo@an.ismar.cnr.it.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Punzo
authors.affiliation: National Research Council - Institute of Marine Sciences (CNR-ISMAR), 60125 Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Strafella
authors.affiliation: National Research Council - Institute of Marine Sciences (CNR-ISMAR), 60125 Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Scarcella
authors.affiliation: National Research Council - Institute of Marine Sciences (CNR-ISMAR), 60125 Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Spagnolo
authors.affiliation: Consorzio per il Centro Interuniversitario di Biologia Marina ed Ecologia Applicata (CIBM), 57128 Livorno, Italy.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: De Biasi
authors.affiliation: National Research Council - Institute of Marine Sciences (CNR-ISMAR), 60125 Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fabi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004777:Environment; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D020387:Food Chain; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D061329:Oil and Gas Fields; D011077:Polychaeta / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Adriatic Sea; Offshore gas platforms; Polychaetes; Soft bottom; Spatial distribution; Trophic structure