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JPR Advance Access originally published online on March 19, 2008
Journal of Plankton Research 2008 30(7):795-805; doi:10.1093/plankt/fbn040
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Diversity and distribution of the mesozooplankton in the tropical Southwestern Atlantic

Sigrid Neumann-Leitão1,*, Eneida Maria Eskinazi Sant'anna2, Lúcia Maria De Oliveira Gusmão1, Dilma Aguiar Do Nascimento-Vieira1, Maryse Nogueira Paranaguá3 and Ralf Schwamborn4,5

1 Departament of Oceanography, Federal University of Pernambuco, AV. Arquitetura S/N, Cidade UniversitáRia, 50670-901 Recife, PE, Brazil 2 Departament of Oceanography and Limnology, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil 3 Department of Biology, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Brazil 4 Departament of Zoology, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil 5 Department of Animal Ecology, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), Am Alten Hafen 26, D-27568 Bremerhaven, Germany

* CORRESPONDING AUTHOR: sigrid{at}terra.com.br

Received on February 18, 2008; accepted on March 15, 2008


  Abstract

Mesozooplankton species distribution and abundance were studied in the tropical Southwestern Atlantic, in neritic and oceanic regions off the state of Rio Grande do Norte, northeastern Brazil (3° to 6° S and 32°30' to 35°30' W). Samples were collected with a 120 µm mesh net towed horizontally at 40 stations along five transects in June 1986. A total of 151 taxa were identified. Copepoda (93 species) numerically dominated (78%) the community. The highest zooplankton abundance was recorded at a coastal station (1098 ind m–3), and the lowest at the station farthest offshore (82 ind m–3). The low abundance of zooplankton corresponded to oligotrophic water masses, and differences in abundance were locally affected by topographic upwelling. Three groups were distinguished: (i) oceanic with very low total abundance (<15 ind m–3), (ii) a mix of neritic and oceanic species and (iii) coastal neritic group. Species diversity was high (mean 3.14 ± 0.42 bits ind–1) and increased with the ecological stability of the area. The local oceanographic conditions, with a strong connection between the oligotrophic oceanic water masses and the enriched coastal water, are of paramount importance to the local food chain and patterns of zooplankton diversity.

Corresponding editor: Roger Harris


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