Community structure of epibenthic megafauna in the Chukchi Sea

Aquatic Biology

关键词: Benthos;    Epifauna;    Chukchi Sea;    Arctic;    Community structure;    Benthic–pelagic coupling;    Temporal change;    Chionoecetes opilio;   

DOI  :  10.3354/ab00198

学科分类：生物科学（综合）

来源: Inter-Research

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACT: Climate change and increased focus on resource development in Arctic Seas have fueled interest in the Chukchi Sea, yet few quantitative studies have been conducted on the larger, epifaunal component of seafloor communities, which serves important roles in sediment biogeochemical processes and provides a food source for fishes and marine mammals. Here we provide quantitative data on the present condition of benthic epifaunal abundance and biomass from the Chukchi shelf and examine the influence of environmental variables on epifaunal communities. We collected 45 beam trawl samples in the Russian and United States sectors of the Chukchi Sea in 2004, 2007 and 2008. Gross abundance estimates ranged from 229 to 70879 ind. 1000 m

【 授权许可】

CC BY