Effects of tide pool volume on pool diversity Lindsay Grant, Anna Mairs, Charlotte Martin, Natalie Rideout and Gillian Tetlow

The Rocky Intertidal – Tide Pools The coastal area that is exposed during low tide and submerged during high tide Contains a high biodiversity of species A receding tide leaves an accumulation of pools

Tide pools Allow organisms to escape high temperatures and desiccation Acts as breeding and nursing grounds, provides protection and a feeding habitat Can also be stressful environments Changing ocean salinity, temperature and pH

Goal of Study To determine if the tide pool size affects the species diversity Hypothesis - Species abundance will increase with increased size and depth of tide pools - However, species distribution will not be significantly different between varying tide pool dimensions

Methods Sampled 10 random tide pools of different sizes Measured dimensions Used a quadrat (1m x 1m) for larger pools Collected samples of all plants and animals present Plant coverage estimated Identified all species in the lab 49.jpg

Methods – Calculations

Results Plant average – species total Animal average – species total

Results

No significant patterns found for plant or animal diversity More sparse species of animals found than plants

Discussion Plants : 3 outliers Constant diversity irrespective of tide pool size Failed to support hypothesis y.htm

Discussion Animals: Similar to plants, 2 outliers Richness vs Abundance Failed to support hypothesis Gastropods.htm

Discussion Confounding variables: Ambient conditions Elevation Uneven distribution of pool volumes

Discussion Supporting studies: Cullity (2012) Found no significant relationship Biological relevance: Metaxas and Scheibling (1993) Refuge area from stressful conditions

Questions?