Benthic macrofauna associated with decomposition of leaves in a mangrove forest in Ilheus, State of Bahia, Brazil

We identified and quantified the benthic macrofauna associated with decomposing leaves of Rhizophora mangle and Laguncularia racemosa, to observe the differences in the abundance and composition of macrofauna between these mangrove species, and to examine whether the abundance and composition of organisms changed with different stations and collection times. Benthic macrofauna, mainly polychaetes and amphipods, were recorded from the fifth day after the installation of the experiment. Annelids including Oligochaeta and Polychaeta were the most numerous group. Crustacea were represented by peracarids (Amphipoda and Tanaidacea) and decapods. Of Hexapoda, only juvenile forms and pupae were present. The most abundant polychaete species was Perinereis brevicirrata, followed by Capitella cf. capitata, Heteromastus filiformis and Neanthes succinea. In one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) there were no statistical differences between the macrofauna of mangrove species, seasons, or collection times, except among collection times for R. mangle litter bags. Two-way ANOVA showed homogeneity for macrofauna abundance between the groups of collection times for both mangrove species. The richness was similar for R. mangle litter bags, and showed a significant difference for L. racemosa. Abundance and richness were also similar between the mangrove species. The colonization of detritus by benthic invertebrates followed a successional sequence during the decomposition process. This suggests that the density of these organisms and their foraging behaviour affected the decomposition rates of leaves of R. mangle and L. racemosa.