Barbour's Pond is a 4.45-ha pond located in Garrett Mountain Reservation in Passaic County in northern New Jersey, one of the most densely populated regions in the United States. Despite its small size and surrounding urban sprawl, the shallow waters of this pond hold 18 species of molluscs. Monthly samples from March 2004 through March 2006 found the highest diversity in December 2004, and in January, June, and July 2005. Additional samples were taken in April 2007 and May 2010 to spot-check relative diversity years after the original sampling period. Total molluscan abundance was greatest in July and November 2004, possibly reflecting new late spring and autumn cohorts. Univariate statistics demonstrate that this pond has a temporally stable and diverse malacofauna. Analysis, of basic environmental parameters including temperature and pH, however, showed little correlation with molluscan diversity over time, underscoring the stable yet complex nature of biodiversity of this small urban pond.
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1 September 2012
Temporal Variation in Molluscan Community Structure in an Urban New Jersey Pond
Eric J. Chapman,
Robert S. Prezant,
Rebecca Shell
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Northeastern Naturalist
Vol. 19 • No. 3
September 2012
Vol. 19 • No. 3
September 2012