Abstract
Meiofauna communities of four intertidal sites, two sheltered and two more exposed, in Kongsfjorden (Svalbard) were investigated in summer 2001 at two different tidal levels (i.e. the low-water line and close below the driftline, referred to as mid-water (MW) level). A total of seven meiofaunal higher taxa were recorded with nematodes, oligochaetes and turbellarians being numerically dominant. Mean total meiofaunal densities ranged between 50 ind. 10 cm−2 and 903 ind. 10 cm−2. Our data showed a clear decrease in total meiofaunal densities with increasing coarseness of the sediment. Total meiofaunal biomass varied from 0.2 g dwt m−2 to 2 g dwt m−2 and, in general, was high even at low meiofaunal densities, i.e. larger interstitial spaces in coarser sediments supported larger meiofauna, especially turbellarians. The results on the vertical distribution of meiofauna contrasted sharply with typical meiobenthic depth profiles on other beaches, probably in response to ice-scouring and concomitant salinity fluctuations. Oligochaetes were the most abundant taxon, with a peak density of 641 ind. 10 cm−2 at Breoyane Island. They were mainly comprised of juvenile Enchytraeidae, which prohibited identification to species/genus level. Nematode densities ranged between 4 ind. 10 cm−2 and 327 ind. 10 cm−2. Nematodes were identified up to genus level and assigned to trophic guilds. In total, 28 nematode genera were identified. Oncholaimus and Theristus were the most abundant genera. The composition of the nematode community and a dominance of predators and deposit feeders were in agreement with results from other arctic and temperate beaches. Nematode genus diversity was higher at the more sheltered beaches than at the more exposed ones. Low-water level stations also tended to harbour a more diverse nematode communities than stations at the MW level. Differences in nematode community structure between low- and MW stations of single beaches were more pronounced than community differences between different beaches and were mainly related to resources quality and availability.
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Acknowledgements
This study was realized, thanks to the Large Scale Facility grant in 2001 in Ny-Alesund (Svalbard). Tim Ferrero and Tom Gheskiere are greatly acknowledged by the first author for their help with nematode identifications. Tom Moens is a postdoctoral fellow with the Flemish Fund for Scientific Research (FWO).
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Urban-Malinga, B., Wiktor, J., Jabłońska, A. et al. Intertidal meiofauna of a high-latitude glacial Arctic fjord (Kongsfjorden, Svalbard) with emphasis on the structure of free-living nematode communities. Polar Biol 28, 940–950 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-005-0022-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-005-0022-4