MANAGING THE ST. LUCIA ESTUARY—MESSAGES FROM THE MUD

Abstract

Summary The infaunal macrobenthic community of the St Lucia estuary has been exposed to natural disturbance in the form of salinity fluctuations arising from floods and hypersaline conditions, and human-induced interference arising from dredging and beam trawling. The responses of the benthos to these disturbances have been recorded between 1983 and 1994 and are discussed in the light of management options for the estuary. A simple benthic sampling strategy is suggested to monitor the important benthic species.