Organism and Environment on Polluted Beaches: A Canonical Correlation Analysis

Abstract

Beach conditions and the variety and abundance of intertidal macrofauna on beaches in different states of pollution on the south shore of the Outer Firth of Forth [Scotland, United Kingdom] were studied. Exploration of the nexus linking species with sediment was carried out using the statistical method of canonical correlation analysis. On the most heavily polluted of the 4 beaches included in the analysis, 2 contrasting features of the macrofaunal community are apparent: Scolelepis fuliginosa and Spio filicornis form a substantial part of the biomass and are associated with finer sediments, whereas Eteone longa contributes less to the biomass and is associated with coarser sediments which have a lower organic content. Beach characteristics and the species associated with them are largely specific to the individual beaches along a pollution gradient. An outline description of the observed nexus is given.