Abstract
The metazoan plankton along a meridional North Sea transect between 54° and 62°N was sampled in winter 1991, and spring and late summer 1994. Depth-integrated abundances of 65 taxa were derived per station. The effective number of species ranged between 1 and 10, indicating that the North Sea has only a few abundant metazooplankton species. Biodiversity was highest in spring and showed little difference between winter and summer. With latitude, the lowest values were found between 56° and 60°N. A meridional ordination of zooplankton communities was most clear for the spring period. Three aspects of diversity seem fundamental for the North Sea and may be closely related to its ecology. 1) There are only a few abundant species such as the very numerous cyclopoidOithona similis. 2) These species show an early numerical development before March/April, mainly south of 58°N, which increases diversity. 3) Diversity seems also to be enhanced by mixing of the species-poor central community with more coastal communities in the border areas near Dogger Bank and the Shetlands, particularly during summer.
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Fransz, H.G., Gonzalez, S.R. Seasonal and meridional trends in zooplankton diversity of the central North Sea. Senckenbergiana maritima 31, 255–261 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03043034
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03043034