A study on meiofauna community in the subtidal sediment outside of the Saemangeum Seadike in the west coast of Korea

Abstract

The community structure of benthic meiofauna was investigated from seasonal surveys at seventeen stations off the Saemangeum area, in 2007. Ten meiofaunal taxa were identified. Nematodes were the dominant faunal group in all seasons and harpacticoids were dominant only at a few stations. The mean density of meiofauna was 383 indiv. 10 cm−2, highest in May and November (434 indiv. 10 cm−2), lowest in February (284 indiv. 10 cm−2). Meiofaunal mean biomass was 80.49 μgC·10 cm−2, highest in November (99.54 μgC·10 cm−2), lowest in February (51.56 μgC·10 cm−2). Cluster analysis revealed that the study area was composed of three benthic meiofaunal communities. There were significant correlations between major meiofaunal groups and sediment composition and the concentrations of heavy metals. The abundance of harpacticoids are positively correlated with silt (0.559, p < 0.01) and clay (0.340, p < 0.01), and negatively correlated with sand (−0.548, p < 0.01). Harpacticoids also showed positive correlations with heavy metals. The community structure of meiofauna in the study area varied seasonally in response to the change of sediment composition.