Nematode communities associated with tubeworm and mussel aggregations on the East Pacific Rise

The meiobenthic nematode community of three different vent sites at the East Pacific Rise was studied in order to determine whether the abundance, species richness, diversity and trophic structure were similar. The sites Tica and Riftia Field were dominated by the tubeworm Riftia pachyptila, and the Buckfield site was dominated by the mussel Bathymodiolus thermophilus. The nematode communities of all three sites were low in abundance (< 1 up to 46 ind. 10 cm-2), except one sample from Tica with almost 1000 ind. 10 cm-2. The communities at all sites consisted entirely of primary consumers, mostly deposit feeders. Species richness and Shannon-Wiener diversity indices were low and similar at both tubeworm sites and slightly but significantly higher at the mussel site. Multivariate analysis revealed that the species dissimilarity among the three sites was greater than 50 %, indicating distinct communities at each site.

Duke Scholars

Author Cindy Van Dover Marine Science and Conservation