Taxonomic guides to benthic invertebrates of Puget Sound

A 2014 Washington State Department of Ecology report provides a taxonomic guide for Puget Sound sediment-dwelling invertebrates (benthos). Surveys of these species are used to monitor the health of the foodweb, as well as levels of toxic contaminants in the seafloor.

Cirratulus spectabilis (Phylum Annelida, Class Polychaeta, Family Cirratulidae) – This polychaete annelid is known as a “sphaghetti worm” because of the tangled mass of branchia (gills) emerging from the segments. These are used for respiration. The number and placement of these are distinctive for each species in this family. (Photo: Maggie Dutch)
Cirratulus spectabilis (Phylum Annelida, Class Polychaeta, Family Cirratulidae) – This polychaete annelid is known as a “sphaghetti worm” because of the tangled mass of branchia (gills) emerging from the segments. These are used for respiration. The number and placement of these are distinctive for each species in this family. (Photo: Maggie Dutch)

Introduction

Over 1200 unique taxa of benthic, or bottom-dwelling, invertebrates (also known as benthos) live in the soft sediments of Puget Sound. Benthos are a critical part of the Puget Sound food web.

The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) has surveyed the condition of benthic invertebrate assemblages and their associated sediments throughout Puget Sound since 1989 as part of the Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program (PSEMP) (Dutch et al., 2009).

Data from these surveys are used to calculate various sediment quality indicators (Dutch et al., 2014), including a Benthic Infaunal Index, which inform regional environmental managers and policy makers about sediment and benthos condition.

Summary and Future Work

This report describes two types of taxonomic products generated for PSEMP benthos monitoring.  Descriptions have been generated for 152 soft sediment taxa to date.  We emphasize that these tools are needed to maintain the consistency and integrity of long-term benthos data generated for this program and for other Puget Sound and greater Salish Sea benthos monitoring programs.   

To accomplish this critical task, Ecology’s Sediment Monitoring Team will (1) continue to create these documents for the remaining 1000+ taxa identified by the PSEMP and (2) encourage contributions and partnerships with other Salish Sea taxonomists and benthic ecologists.

Citation

Dutch, M., Welch, K., Weakland, S., Ruffner, J., Pool, S., & Partridge, V. (2014). Taxonomic Guides to Benthic Invertebrates of Puget Sound. Washington State Department of Ecology, Olympia, Washington. 

Download the full report (PDF)