Macrofaunal communities on the continental shelf off Victoria Land, Ross Sea, Antarctica

• Published in: Antarctic Science
• Main Authors: Rehm, Peter, Hooke, Rachel A., Thatje, Sven
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 2011
• Subjects: Antarctic; Austral; Ross Sea; Victoria Land; Weddell; Weddell Sea; Antarc*; Antarctic Science; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0954102011000290; https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0954102011000290

Abstract In austral summer 2004 benthic macrofauna was sampled along a latitudinal gradient along the northern Victoria Land coast (Ross Sea). An Agassiz trawl was used for semi-quantitative data collection of macrozoobenthos at depths from 84 to 537 m. Multivariate analysis of abundance of higher taxonomic units discriminated between the four sample sites along the latitudinal gradient. A SIMPROF analysis emphasized these geographical clusters, as the samples showed no significant differences within each cluster. A change in community structure with depth was not observed. The dominant taxonomic groups along the Victoria Land coast were Echinodermata (39%), Arthropoda (24%), Polychaeta (14%), and Mollusca (12%), not accounting for colonial organisms. Thus, the overall structure of the benthic community off the Victoria Land coast is comparable to other Antarctic regions and shows a closer relationship to the eastern Weddell Sea shelf, which may be attributable to the extensive impact of grounded ice affecting both areas.