FOULING COMMUNITY AT FOUR DEPTHS IN GUAIBA ISLAND, RIO DE JANEIRO (BRAZIL)

Abstract

The specific composition and the structure of the fouling community that grew on 4 PVC panels (0.20 x 0.20m) at 2, 5, 10 and 15 meters deep are presented in this paper. During the experiment 40 taxa grew, on the panels as fouling organisms. Some taxa occorred only at one depth: Polyandrocarpa sp. (Chordata ) -15 meters, Ascidia interrupta (Chordata), Ulva lactuca, Enteromorpha flexuoxa (Chlorophyta) and Colpomenia sinuosa (Phaeophyta) - ­2 meters. Extra panels were fixed to observe the recruitment in 4 different seasons. Hincksia mitchelliae (Phaeophyta), Megabalanus coccopoma, Balanus trigonus, B. eburncus (Crustácea), Obelia dichotoma and Ectopleura warreni (Cuidaria) were some of the most frequent species observed on the recruitment panels. The biomass of the organism, present at 2 and 5 meters were higher than those from la and 15 meters. Significant differences were detected on the taxa frequence among the 4 depths and among the 12 experiment months.