The meiobenthos along a Mediterranean deep-sea transect off Calvi (Corsica) and in an adjacent canyon

Meiobenthos densities (excluding hard-shelled foraminiferans) were compared along a Mediterranean deep-sea transect off Calvi (Corsica) and in an adjacent canyon. Chloroplastic Pigment Equivalent values (CPE) provided an estimate of the amount of primary production reaching the bottom. The stations...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine Ecology
Main Authors: Soetaert, Karline, Heip, Carlos, Vincx, Magda
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 1991
Subjects:
Biology and Life Sciences
Earth and Environmental Sciences
MEIOBENTHOS
DEEP SEA
CANYON
MEIOFAUNA DISTRIBUTION
LORICIFERA
TANTULOCARIDA
XENOPHYOPHORIA
NORTHEAST ATLANTIC
PORCUPINE-SEABIGHT
STANDING STOCK
SIZE STRUCTURE
ABYSSAL-PLAIN
NE ATLANTIC
BATHYAL
ECOLOGY
FLUXES
OCEAN
Porcupine Seabight
Northeast Atlantic
Copepods
Online Access:https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/222515
http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-222515
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0485.1991.tb00255.x
Description
Summary:Meiobenthos densities (excluding hard-shelled foraminiferans) were compared along a Mediterranean deep-sea transect off Calvi (Corsica) and in an adjacent canyon. Chloroplastic Pigment Equivalent values (CPE) provided an estimate of the amount of primary production reaching the bottom. The stations along the transect were characterized by a low CPE content of the sediment, decreasing with increasing station depth. CPE values in the canyon were much higher, which probably resulted from import of material from the adjacent bay of Calvi. Similarly, meiobenthos densities along the transect were much lower than at comparable depths along the canyon. Meiobenthos density was significantly and positively correlated with CPE values. Nematodes were the most abundant taxon at all stations, followed by copepods + nauplii and the soft-shelled foraminiferans. The meiobenthos was most abundant in the upper half centimeter. Nematode and foraminiferan densities tended to decline less rapidly with increasing depth into the sediment. Specimens belonging to the recently described phylum Loricifera, larvae of the parasitic crustacean class Tantulocarida, and fragments of an infaunal Xenophyophoria (large protozoans) are reported for the first time from the Mediterranean.

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