https://commons.ru.ac.za/vital/access/manager/Index en-us 5 https://commons.ru.ac.za/vital/access/manager/Repository/vital:6431 Tue 14 May 2024 12:45:06 SAST ]]> https://commons.ru.ac.za/vital/access/manager/Repository/vital:7154 60 % of the invertebrate biomass at Zostera sites but <5 % at bare sand sites. Conversely the infaunal anomuran C. kraussi dominated the sandy sites (>80 %) and was a minor component (<5 %) at eelgrass sites. The supratidal invertebrate community was dominated by Orchestia spp. which live and feed on wrack detritus. Litterbag experiments revealed that degradation of Zostera leaf wrack was rapid during the first thirty days after deposition but slow between 40 and 140 days. Laboratory experiments indicated that Orchestia consumption of wrack material could not account for the rapid weight loss recorded in the natural environment. Preliminary diet analyses of intertidal and infratidal zoobenthos revealed that most invertebrate species feed on detritus and associated microorganisms. Filamentous algae and diatoms dominated the gut contents of only three out of 18 macrobenthic species, and living Zostera was not an important food item for any invertebrate examined.]]> Mon 08 Jul 2024 06:48:50 SAST ]]>