An improved supra- and epibenthic sledge for catching Peracarida (Crustacea, Malacostraca)

A new type of epibenthic sledge is presented, which possesses an additional supranet above the epinet. Both nets are closed by an opening/closing device in the water column. The new construction allows a selective catch ofhigher suprafauna, which swims 1–1.33m above the seafloor, and a good discrimi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ophelia
Main Authors: Brandt, Angelika, Barthel, Dagmar
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis 1995
Subjects:
Online Access:https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/43959/
https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/43959/1/Ophelia%2043,%201,%2015-23.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1080/00785326.1995.10430574
Description
Summary:A new type of epibenthic sledge is presented, which possesses an additional supranet above the epinet. Both nets are closed by an opening/closing device in the water column. The new construction allows a selective catch ofhigher suprafauna, which swims 1–1.33m above the seafloor, and a good discrimination between real suprafauna and epifauna. In total, 79581 Peracarida were sampled at 8 stations at about 75°N and 12°W, off Greenland. Of these, Isopoda were usually the most abundant group in the epinet, Amphipoda in the supranet. At the stations where suprafauna was abundant, the numbers of Mysidacea were usually higher in the epinet than in the supranet, probably due to differences in food supply, i.e. the enrichment of food in the benthic boundary layer.