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On the ecology of a dense bed of the brittle-star Ophiothrix fragilis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

G. F. Warner
G. F. Warner
Affiliation:
Zoology Department, Reading University
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Extract

INTRODUCTION

The occurrence of dense beds of the brittle-star Ophiothrix fragilis (Abildgaard) in certain localized areas around the British Isles has been reported by several authors (Allen, 1899; Vevers, 1952; Cabioch, 1961; Holme, 1961; Brun, 1969), with population densities varying from 340/m2 (Vevers, 1952) to 2196/m2 (Brun, 1969). These populations seem to be permanent features of the sea bed since the aggregation sampled by Allen was in the same position as that photographed by Vevers fifty years later.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 51 , Issue 2 , May 1971 , pp. 267 - 282
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1971

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References

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