Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria 12 April 1971 Port Phillip Bay Survey 2 https://doi.org/10.24199/j.mmv.1971.32.08 8 INTERTIDAL ECOLOGY OF PORT PHILLIP BAY WITH SYSTEMATIC LIST OF PLANTS AND ANIMALS By R. J. KING,* J. HOPE BLACKt and SOPHIE c. DUCKER* Abstract The zonation is recorded at 14 stations within Port Phillip Bay. Any special features of a station arc di�cusscd in �elation to the adjacent stations and the whole Bay. The intertidal plants and ammals are listed systematically with references, distribution within the Bay and relevant comment. 1. INTERTIDAL ECOLOGY South-western Bay-Areas 42, 49, 50 By R. J. KING and J. HOPE BLACK Arca 42: Station 21 St. Leonards 16 Oct. 69 Introduction Arca 49: Station 4 Swan Bay Jetty, 17 Sept. 69 This account is basically coneerncd with the distribution of intertidal plants and animals of Eastern Bay-Areas 23-24, 35-36, 47-48, 55 Port Phillip Bay. The benthic flora and fauna Arca 23, Station 20, Ricketts Pt., 30 Sept. 69 have been dealt with in separate papers (Mem­ Area 55: Station 15 Schnapper Pt. 25 May oir 27 and present volume). 70 Following preliminary investigations, 14 Area 55: Station 13 Fossil Beach 25 May stations were selected for detailed study in such 70 a way that all regions and all major geological formations were represented. These localities Southern Bay-Areas 60-64, 67-70 are listed below and are shown in Figure 1. Arca 63: Station 24 Martha Pt. 25 May 70 For ease of comparison with Womersley Port Phillip Heads-Areas 58-59 (1966), in his paper on the subtidal algae, the Area 58: Station 10 Quecnscliff, 12 Mar. 69 bay is divided into the same regions. All Arca 58: Station 5 Pt. Nepean, 15 Jan. 70 regions exeept Central Bay are included. Stations or groups of stations are considered The dates given are the dates of the main separately below. The basic zonation is out­ investigation of the area, but all stations have lined in a table which, unless otherwise stated, been visited on several occasions. is that of open rock platform. The letters U, M or L after a species refer to its position within Northern Bay-Areas 1-14 the zone indicated. The position shown for a Area 6: Station 16 Williamstown, 28 Aug. 69 particular species is the level of maximum de­ Corio Bay-Areas 15-18, 25-30, 37-40 velopment and individuals of this species may Area 16: Station 23 Kirk Pt. 2 Feb. 69 be found well above and/ or below this. Sea­ Area 25: Station 19 North Corio Bay, 17 sonal functuations in abundance occur for Sept. 69 many algae and in some cases this has been Area 26: Station 2 Limeburners Ck. 17 Sept. noted. 69 Northern Bay 27: Station 17 Pt Wilson, 2 Feb. 70 Area Area 6 (Sl 6) Williamstown (Foreshore off Station 22 Portarlington, 16 Oet. Area 29: Gloucester Reserve) 28 August 69 69 Area 6 (S16A) Williamstown (0·25 mi E. • School of Botany, University of Melbourn,· t Hon. Associate, National Museum of Victoria of 16). 93 94 INTERTIDAL ECOLOGY MELBOURNE LIMEBURNERS CK MILES (Nautical) Fig. 1 —Map of localities. Geology and Geomorphology corded even though a special search was made The whole of the foreshore has been altered for them: Austrocochlea constricta, Bemblcium by man and there is a sea wall along the back and Melarapha praetermissa. The animals are of the beach. Basalt boulders have been built mostly on steep rock faces e.g. Galeolaria up along the sea front and an artificial break- caespitosa and Mytilus planulatus, or in crevices water, also of basalt, has been built normal to e.g. Heliocidaris erythrogramma, Actinea tene- the sea wall approximately half way along the brosa, Pateriella calcar, the orange sponge reserve Tethys frontage. At station 16A there is a australis, and numerous small anem- natural rock platform developed on Pleistocene ones. The algae are commonly on horizontal basalt. rock surfaces. Pools at station 16A contained the following algae: Enteromorpha, Flora and Fauna Viva lac- tuca, Corallina officinalis, Grateloupia filicina The basic pattern of zonation is shown in and Lithothamnion. The brown algae Caulo- Table 1. The following species were not re- cystis cephalornithos, Cystophora polycystidea, By R. J. KING, J. HOPE BLACK & SOPHIE C. DUCKER 95 Table 1. Northern Bay Region, Williamstown (S 16, 16A) Zone Plants Animals Littoral Salicornia quinqueflora2 Melarapha Fringe unifasciata L (in crevices and small holes) Bangia fuscopurpurea 1 L Enteromorpha M Siphonaria diemenensis M Upper Cellana tramoserica M eulittoral Austrocochlea adelaidae 3 A. odontis3 Patelloida alticostata Porphyra 1 U MlD- Enteromorpha intestinalis U EULITTORAL Ulva lactuca 1 U Poneroplax costata Gelidium pusillum L Mytilus planulatus L Hormosira banksii2 U Galeolaria caespitosa U Lower Centroceras clavulatum U eulittoral PolysiphoniaX Actinia tenebrosa U Ulva lactuca M Caulerpa brownii L Pateriella calcar3 C. geminata U = Upper ] part C. longifolia f. crispata M = Middle \ of C. remotifolia Upper L = Lower J zone SUB- C. simpliciuscula 1 = Seasonally abundant LlTTORAL Corallina officinalis 2 = On natural platform only Ecklonia radiata (S.16A) Lithothamnion 3 = In pools Sargassum spp. C. retorta, Colpomenia sinuosa, Sargassum sp. fringed on the landward side by A triplex cinerea and Scytosiphon lomentaria, were less abun- and behind this is a marsh area with Salicornia dant, and heavily covered with epiphytic col- quinqueflora and Arthrocnemum halocnemoides onial diatoms. Zostera muelleri occurs in shal- as the most common species. Table 2 shows the low sandy pools and was also heavily epiphy- basic zonation at these stations. The pattern is tized. substantially modified by conditions of local shelter. The strong development Corio Bay (A) of the algae Centroceras clavulatum, Grateloupia fdicina Area 16 (S23) Kirk Point 2 February, 1970 var. luxurians, Rhabdonia robusta, Rhodoglos- Area 27 (S17) Point Wilson 2 February, sum and the excessive growth of Ulva lactuca 1970. probably indicates nutrient enrichment from the Geology and Geomorphology adjacent Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works sewerage farm. The same algal repre- These two stations are representative of a sentatives occur together near a waste outfall number of isolated and small outcrops of Pleis- pipe at Portarlington, Area 29 (S22). tocene basalt on the W. margin of the Bay. Only those animals capable of withstanding The outcrops form boulder beaches limited by the sheltered conditions and the sandy-clay sub- sandy beach in the upper regions, and by sandy- strate are present. On the rocky outcrops Bem- clay sediments just below low tide level. bicum auratum occurs in the upper eulittoral, Flora and Fauna grading into Austrocochlea constricta above the The outcrops are backed by a sandy beach Mytilus planulatus-Galeolaria caespitosa band. with a high percentage of shell remains. This is On the Galeolaria and below it Cominella 96 INTERTIDAL ECOLOGY Table 2. Corio Bay Region (A) Point Wilson and Kirk Point (S17, 23) Zone Plants Animals Littoral Fringe Upper Bcmhicium auratum U eulittoral Austrococlilea constricta M Mid- Ulva lactuca U eu littoral Enteromorpha U Mytihis planulatus L Gelidium pusillurn L Polysipkonta 1 Galeolaria caespitosa U Lower Centroceras clavulatum Cominella eburnea L eulittoral Grateloupia filicina 1 M Cominclta lineolata L Caulerpa brownii L Pyura praepntialis L Upper Caulerpa remolifolia U U = Upper 1 part C. longifolia f. crispata U = Middle of Sub- M \ Rhodoglossum U L = Lower zone Littoral J 1 = Seasonally abundant eburnea and C. lineolata are common, while be- Flora and Fauna low this at low tide level scattered Pyura prae- The numerous boulders afford protection for putialis are found. On sandy patches between the intertidal animals and although the environ- the rocks the large speckled anemone Oulactis ment has a limited fauna in species, the number muscosa is common, as are the molluscs Kate- of individuals is large. The general distribution lysia rhytophora and Parcanassa pauperata. of species is shown in Table 3. There are no Anadara trapezia which was taken in numbers Melarapha although large boulders at the base in Corio Bay region by the benthic survey is of the cliff should provide a suitable habitat. found to extend into the sublittoral upper and Under stones in the mid- and lower eulittoral lower culittoral zones on the sandy beaches are Cominella lineolata a«d Paragrapsus gai- to the north of Point Wilson and Kirk Point. mardii; also occasionally Lepsiella vinosa, Vela- They occur in large clumps of dead living and cumantus austrails, Pateriella brevispina, and shells many clumps having up to a dozen live Tosia australis are found. Anadara trapezia is shells in them. present in small numbers. Algae growing in the To the SE. of Point Wilson there are large lower eulittorial and upper sublittoral zones beds Zostera, of with Viva lactuca and Caulerpa are covered with epiphytic diatoms. species occurring on isolated rocks. On the Corio Bay (C) sheltered inner margin of these beds Acetabu- laria peniculus is found growing on dead Kate- Area 29 (S22) Portarlington 16 October, 1969. lysia scalar ina shells. Geology and Geomorphology The bedrock is Tertiary Corio Bay (B) lower basalt and there is a small, almost horizontal, wave cut Area 25 (S19) Corio Bay North 17 Septem- platform (Jutson 1931). The platform lies ber, 1969. in the mid- and lower-eulittoral, and there is Geology and Geomorphology a sharp drop into the sub-littoral. The shoreline is in Tertiary limestone, marls Flora and Fauna and sands. These have eroded to form low cliffs The general pattern of zonation is shown in approximately 20 ft. high with a narrow boulder Table 4. In sandy patches in the upper sub- beach derived from the bedrock. The cliff breaks littoral Zostera muelleri occurs heavily epiphy- away in large blocks up to six ft.