Vol. 60, 2021 (update: 2021.10.12; 11.19) Multiple Environmental Factors Increase the Niche Complexity and Species Diversity of Brachyuran Crabs in an Intertidal Algal Reef Ecosystem in Northwestern TaiwanKun-Chang Li1![]() ![]() doi:10.6620/ZS.2021.60-73
1Department
of Life Science, Tunghai University, 1727, Sec.4, Taiwan Boulevard,
Xitun District, Taichung City 407224, Taiwan. E-mail:
kunchang.li@gmail.com (Li) Received 6 August 2021 / Accepted 6
October 2021 Algal
reefs are one of the world’s rare and poorly understood ecosystems.
They are mainly distributed in the Mediterranean Sea, but one notable
exception—an intertidal algal reef ecosystem in northwestern
Taiwan—stretches for 27 km along the coast of Taoyuan, making it
probably the largest algal reef coast found in shallow water. Despite
the reef’s rarity and striking characteristics, the coastal land that
it is part of has undergone a series of developments and is now
surrounded by industrial parks. Brachyuran crabs are one of the most
abundant and visible groups of organisms in the intertidal zone. In the
present study, we investigated the brachyuran crab community in this
reef to provide a more detailed record of brachyuran crab species
compositions in this intertidal algal reef ecosystem and illustrate the
characteristics of this understudied ecosystem by comparing its species
diversity and abundance with three natural variables—sampling time,
tidal level, and season—in a wildlife refuge and north of the refuge.
Two methods were used in the study: a qualitative method (to determine
the species richness) and a quantitative method (to estimate the
population density). We identified a total of 52 brachyuran species
from 13 families in the habitats. The highest species richness was
found in Datan G2, north of the wildlife refuge. The crab species
composition in this algal reef is different from its compositions in
coral and rocky reefs. Our analysis indicated that the species
abundance is affected by multiple factors, and a single investigation
is not enough to reflect the true population density of brachyuran
crabs on this reef. In addition, we found that the sites outside the
wildlife refuge were in much better condition than those in the
wildlife refuge, and should therefore be included in the wildlife
refuge. In particular, Datan, located north of the wildlife refuge, had
the highest species richness, and the area’s species composition was
different from that of the nearby wildlife refuge. Thus, we strongly
recommend that a) the Datan area be protected to maintain this high
crab diversity and b) further research be performed to better
understand brachyuran crab biology in the intertidal algal reef
ecosystem. Key words: Algal reef
ecosystem, Anthropogenic disturbance, Brachyuran crabs, Coralligenous
reef, Taoyuan algal reef. Citation:
Li KC, Liu HC, Lin HC. 2021. Multiple environmental factors increase
the niche complexity and species diversity of brachyuran crabs in an
intertidal algal reef ecosystem in northwestern Taiwan. Zool Stud 60:73. Supplementary
materials: Table
S1丨Table S2丨Table S3丨Table S4丨Table S5 |