Stability in an annually defaunated estuarine soft-bottom community

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Abstract
The concept of biological stability is so complex that at least 6 different meanings have been ascribed to it. It is proposed that 1 definition, the ability of a system once perturbed to return to its previous state be utilized as a working definition. Quantitative data collected monthly from a soft-bottom community that undergoes an annual natural catastrophic defaunation and a recently developed analytical technique were used to demonstrate the feasability of a working definition and show the existence of stability in the soft-bottom community. The utility of a working definition of stability in the evaluation of disturbance is discussed.