Dynamics of bacterial community structure on intertidal sandflat inhabited by the ghost shrimp Nihonotrypaea harmandi (Decapoda: Axiidea: Callianassidae) in Tomioka Bay, Amakusa, Japan

Callianassid (ghost) shrimp has been claimed as an ecosystem engineer, as it is one of the most powerful bioturbating macrobenthos in intertidal sandflats. However, our knowledge about the relationship between areal distribution of bottom-dwelling ghost shrimps and dynamics of sediment microbial community structure remains obscured. We used automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA) to reveal the bacterial community dynamics in the sediment of intertidal sandflat of Tomioka Bay, Kyushu, Japan, which is predominantly inhabited by a burrow-dwelling callianassid shrimp Nihonotrypaea harmandi. We found that the bacterial community structures of high and middle shrimp population areas were significantly differentiated from those of low population area (ANOSIM, R = 0.10-0.18, p < 0.01), while the former two areas were statistically indistinguishable (ANOSIM, R = − 0.015, p > 0.1). These results illustrated the potential importance of shrimp population density as a key factor in shaping the bacterial community structure and interpreting their dynamics in the sandflat. Furthermore, greater similarity between burrow and non-burrow communities was found in samples taken in autumn through winter than in those in summer (one-way ANOVA, p < 0.05), whereas the phylotype richness was not simply differentiated by seasons. These results suggest not only that environmental variables including water temperature and salinity of the water column overlying the sandflat could exert notable impacts on the sediment bacterial community dynamics, but that the bio-irrigation and mixing by the ghost shrimp in permeable sandflat would strongly homogenize sediment particles, enhance solute transport surrounding the burrow and ambient subsurface substrate, and therefore reduce spatial differentiation of the bacterial community structure between the two sites. A comparison between present and previous studies of axiidean (former taxonomic group name, thalassinidean) ghost shrimps provides us with a comprehensive understanding of the shrimps' impacts on bacterial community dynamics, highlighting the importance of sediment permeability, a characteristic determined by the type of sediment, as a key controlling factor to shape spatial heterogeneity of bacterial community structure around burrow.