Abundance and distribution of coastal, inshore zooplankton in the Huon Estuary and D'Entrecasteaux Channel, Tasmania

Mesozooplankton community composition and structure were examined throughout the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, Huon Estuary and North West Bay, Tasmania, from November 2004 to October 2005.

The composition of the mesozooplankton community was typical of inshore, temperate marine habitats, with seasonally higher abundance in summer and autumn and lower numbers in winter and spring. Copepods were the largest contributors to total abundance across all seasons and stations, while cladocerans and appendicularians were proportionally abundant in spring and summer. The faecal pellets of these three main groups, along with those of krill and amphipods, also contributed significantly to material recovered from sediment traps. Meroplanktonic larvae of benthic animals showed short-term peaks in abundance and were often absent from the water column for long periods. Spatially, North West Bay and the Channel had a higher representation of typically marine species, including Calanus australis and Labidocera cervi, while truly estuarine species, such as the copepod Gladioferens pectinatus, were more important in the Huon Estuary.

2004年11月至2005年10月，研究人员对塔斯马尼亚州丹特卡斯托海峡（D’Entrecasteaux Channel）、胡恩河口（Huon Estuary）及西北湾（North West Bay）全域的中型浮游动物（mesozooplankton）群落组成与结构进行了系统调查。
该中型浮游动物群落组成符合近岸温带海洋生境的典型特征，丰度呈现显著季节性变化：夏季与秋季丰度较高，冬季与春季丰度偏低。在所有采样季节与站位中，桡足类（Copepods）均为总丰度的最主要贡献类群；而枝角类（Cladocerans）与幼形类（Appendicularians）则在春季、夏季占比更高。上述三大类群，连同磷虾（krill）与端足类（Amphipods）的粪便颗粒，也是沉积物捕集器回收有机质的重要组成部分。底栖动物的暂时性浮游幼体丰度会出现短期峰值，且往往会在较长时段内从水体中消失。从空间分布格局来看，西北湾与丹特卡斯托海峡的典型海洋物种占比更高，包括南方哲水蚤（Calanus australis）、Labidocera cervi；而典型河口物种，如桡足类Gladioferens pectinatus，则在胡恩河口占据更为重要的生态地位。