Meiofaunal Subtidal Community Composition Targeted loci environmental

Meiofauna, which comprise animals less than 1mm living between sediment grains, are important in food webs and nutrient exchange between the benthos and water column. Despite of their importance, the spatial and temporal variation of their communities is not readily examined, especially in the Gulf of Mexico. Herein, we used Illumina high-throughput amplicon sequencing of the eukaryotic hypervariable V9 region of the 18S rRNA gene to examine spatial variation of communities within three separate transects that encompass areas such as Mobile Bay, Mississippi Sound, and coastal Alabama regions in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Sediment samples were collected every 3 months along these three transects and the top 0-3 cm was sampled. Environmental DNA was extracted and community composition was determined using bioinformatics approaches.