Temporal Variation in Recruitment to a Fouling Community in Tampa Bay, Florida

Abstract

The extent of temporal variation in the recruitment pool to a fouling community of Tampa Bay, Florida, was determined by monitoring species settlement on glass plates over a number of seasons. Number of species, abundance of species and species composition varied among seasons and between years. Variation among seasons was greater than variation between years and involved both common and rare species. Variation between years was attributed mostly to rare species. Because, the Tampa Bay fouling community undergoes periodic disturbance ("sloughing off" of barnacles), it is likely that temporal variation in recruitment would have an effect on community development.