Ecological patterns and processes on intertidal and subtidal rocky habitats

The assemblages of species on rocky shores and subtidal surfaces have long been important for developing methods and theories in general ecology. The animals and plants are very diverse, but many of them are abundant, relatively small and not too long-lived (on average) so that they allow direct experimental tests of predictions derived from ecological models and theories.

The Centre has a long-standing international reputation for excellence in the logical structure, experimental design and statistical analysis of tests of ecological theories in coastal rocky habitats. Current research is on processes maintaining local biodiversity and responses to natural and human disturbances. Much emphasis is on the complex interactions among species that sustain local diversity and how these vary in space and time as numbers and types of animals and plants vary.

The Centre has many and diverse research projects on intertidal and subtidal rocky shores. These have generated many scientific papers and theses. We have therefore grouped these projects into some informal topics, to make it easier to find results of our work that may be of specific interest to you.

These are:

• Can diverse habitats cope with disturbance better than monospecific habitats?
• Ecology of animals living in boulder fields
• Effects of structure of habitat on diversity of benthic assemblages
• Influence of learned behaviours on predation
• Quantitative and experimental study of biodiversity on intertidal shores near and away from urban environments
• The distribution of small and large Cellana tramoserica on rocky shores
• Variation in numbers of animals in time and space
• Biogenic habitats and their effects on native and exotic associated invertebrates