Articles | Volume 15, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-2587-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-2587-2018
Research article
 | 
04 May 2018
Research article |  | 04 May 2018

Functional trait responses to sediment deposition reduce macrofauna-mediated ecosystem functioning in an estuarine mudflat

Sebastiaan Mestdagh, Leila Bagaço, Ulrike Braeckman, Tom Ysebaert, Bart De Smet, Tom Moens, and Carl Van Colen

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AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision
ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (22 Mar 2018) by Zhongjun Jia
AR by Sebastiaan Mestdagh on behalf of the Authors (03 Apr 2018)  Author's response   Manuscript 
ED: Publish as is (21 Apr 2018) by Zhongjun Jia
AR by Sebastiaan Mestdagh on behalf of the Authors (23 Apr 2018)  Manuscript 
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Short summary
We studied how invertebrate communities of mudflats are affected by sudden deposition of sediment. We applied sediment layers of different thickness to mudflat communities and studied how their densities, diversity, and behaviour and the exchange of oxygen between the bottom and the water column changed. We found that some species easily diminish in numbers, while others become more active after deposition. The interaction of all species effects influences the environment, i.e. oxygen exchange.
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