Detecting benthic community responses to pollution in estuaries: A field mesocosm approach

Biological stress responses in individuals are used as indicators of pollution in aquatic ecosystems, but detecting ecologically relevant responses in whole communities remains a challenge. We developed an experimental approach to detect the effects of pollution on estuarine communities using field-based mesocosms. Mesocosms containing defaunated sediments from four estuaries in southeastern Australia that varied in sediment contamination were transplanted and buried in sediments of the same four estuaries for six weeks. Mesocosm sediment properties and metal concentrations remained representative of their source locations. In each estuary, fauna communities associated with sediments derived from the site with the highest metal concentrations were significantly different from other communities. This pattern was evident for some of the individual taxa, in particular the polychaete Capitella sp. Consistent responses across estuaries suggest numbers of individuals, and especially Capitella sp., could be used to identify contaminated sediments in estuaries with similar fauna and site characteristics. ► Metal concentrations in mesocosm sediments were representative of source locations. ► Capitella sp. showed strong responses to Kororoit Creek sediments in all estuaries. ► Mesocosms could be used more broadly to test effects of polluted sediments. Large-scale experimental study that demonstrates the ecological effects of pollution on estuarine communities.