Climate-Related, Long-Term Faunal Changes in a California Rocky Intertidal Community

Abstract

Changes in the invertebrate fauna of a California rocky intertidal community between the period 1931 to 1933 and the period 1993 to 1994 indicate that species' ranges shifted northward, consistent with predictions of change associated with climate warming. Of 45 invertebrate species, the abundances of eight of nine southern species increased and the abundances of five of eight northern species decreased. No trend was evident for cosmopolitan species. Annual mean shoreline ocean temperatures at the site increased by 0.75°C during the past 60 years, and mean summer maximum temperatures from 1983 to 1993 were 2.2°C warmer than for the period 1921 to 1931.