Rapid macrobenthos colonization of newly created intertidal habitat in the Hedwige-Prosper Polder managed realignment site (Scheldt estuary, Belgium, the Netherlands)
Van den Neucker, T.; Münstermann, R.; Baeten, S.; van den Broeck, T.; Debbaut, R.; Maris, T.; Schoelynck, J. (2026). Rapid macrobenthos colonization of newly created intertidal habitat in the Hedwige-Prosper Polder managed realignment site (Scheldt estuary, Belgium, the Netherlands). Est., Coast. and Shelf Sci. 331: 109730. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2026.109730
In: Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. Academic Press: London; New York. ISSN 0272-7714; e-ISSN 1096-0015, more
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| Keywords |
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| Author keywords |
Saltmarsh; Mudflat; Spatial variation |
| Authors | | Top |
- Van den Neucker, T., more
- Münstermann, R., more
- Baeten, S., more
- van den Broeck, T., more
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| Abstract |
Over the last 25 years, a series of flood control areas and managed realignment sites have been established along the entire salinity gradient of the Scheldt estuary in Belgium and the Netherlands, which serve both as flood protection measures and to compensate for the loss of intertidal mudflats and marshes caused by anthropogenic perturbations. In October 2022, the Hedwige-Prosper Polder managed realignment site became operational, consisting of the former Prosper and Hedwige Polders and the Sieperda Marsh. We examined the macrobenthos colonization of the Hedwige-Prosper managed realignment site during the first year after tidal restoration. We also investigated the driving abiotic factors behind the macrobenthos community development. Macrobenthos samples, sediment samples and elevation measurements were collected at ten locations covering the entire elevation gradient of the site. Multivariate statistics were used to evaluate the effect of season on macrobenthos species composition, to investigate the relationship between biotic and abiotic variables and to assess the effect of abiotic variables on macrobenthos density. Macrobenthos colonization was rapid. The number of taxa increased sharply between spring and autumn. A total of 28 macroinvertebrate taxa were found 11 months after realignment, of which 21 occurred on the newly created mudflat in the former Prosper and Hedwige Polders. Spatial variation in the macrobenthos community was explained by differences in inundation frequency. Our results indicate that the macrobenthos of the newly created mudflat in the Hedwige-Prosper Polder converges to benthos communities found on natural mudflats in the mesohaline and polyhaline zones of the Scheldt estuary. |
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