Wadden Sea Tidal Flat Food Web
Marine
North Sea Coast — Netherlands, Germany, Denmark
Description
The Wadden Sea is the world's largest unbroken tidal flat system, stretching along the North Sea coasts of the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark. Twice daily, vast mudflats are exposed, supporting astronomical densities of benthic invertebrates that fuel one of Europe's most important bird migration stopovers. Up to 12 million migratory shorebirds depend on this food web annually.
Trophic Pyramid
Level 5
Decomposers
Tidal flat bacteria
Polychaete worms
Mudflat gastropods
3 species
Level 4
Tertiary Consumers
Harbour seal
Peregrine falcon
White-tailed eagle
3 species
Level 3
Secondary Consumers
Red knot
Bar-tailed godwit
Dunlin
3 species
Level 2
Primary Consumers
Lugworm
Cockle
Blue mussel
3 species
Level 1
Producers
Benthic diatoms
Seagrass
Microphytobenthos
3 species
Apex Predators
Tertiary Consumers
Secondary Consumers
Primary Consumers
Producers
Key Interactions
- Red knots fly 15,000 km from Arctic breeding grounds to refuel on Wadden Sea shellfish
- Lugworms rework tidal flat sediment, creating bioturbation that recycles nutrients
- Cockle and mussel beds provide structural habitat and food for shorebirds
- Harbour seals haul out on sandbanks at low tide and forage at high tide