Meiofauna Biodiversity and Ecology

• Format: eBook
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland MDPI - Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2020
• Subjects: Biology, life sciences; Ecological science, the Biosphere; Research and information: general; ABGD; Arabian Gulf; associated fauna; benthic ecology; benthic foraminifera; benthos; BINs; biodiversity; bioindicators; biological substrate; biological traits; Caribbean; checklist; ciliophora; cletodidae; community ecology; dam impact; density; diversity; DNA barcoding; ecology; ecosystem functioning; epibionts; epibiosis; estuary; Florida; free-living marine nematodes; free-living nematodes; freshwater; gastrotricha; Gulf of Mexico; heavy metals; hotspots; huntermaniidae; key; Korea; Kuwait; loggerheads; macrofauna; male genitalia; male/female matching; marine; marine biodiversity; marine invertebrate host; meiofauna; meiofauna paradox; Monstrillidae; Monstrillopsis paradoxa sp. nov.; Monstrillopsis planifrons; morphological taxonomy; mPTP; Nannopus; nematoda; Nematoda; nematodes; new species; North Adriatic Sea; nuclear genes; phoresis; pictorial key; pore pattern; prokaryotes; rhizotrichidae; sea turtles; semi-parasitic; South America; South Hemisphere; species diversity; species richness; suctorea; tagmosis; taxonomy; trophic status; tropical; β-diversity
• Online Access: Open Access: DOAB: description of the publication; Open Access: DOAB, download the publication
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (254 p.)
• ISBN: 9783039431328; 9783039431335; books978-3-03943-133-5
• Access: Open Access

Sedimentary habitats cover the vast majority of the ocean floor and constitute the largest ecosystem on Earth. These systems supply fundamental services to human beings, such as food production and nutrient recycling. It is well known that meiofauna are an abundant and ubiquitous component of sediments, even though their biodiversity and importance in marine ecosystem functioning remain to be fully investigated. In this book, the meiofaunal biodiversity trends in marine habitats worldwide are documented, along with the collection of empirical evidence on their role in ecosystem services, such as the production, consumption, and decomposition of organic matter, and energy transfer to higher and lower trophic levels. Meiofaunal activities, like feeding and bioturbation, induce changes in several physico-chemical and biological properties of sediments, and might increase the resilience of the benthic ecosystem processes that are essential for the supply of ecosystem goods and services required by humans. As a key component of marine habitats, the taxonomical and functional aspects of the meiofaunal community are also used for the ecological assessment of the sediments' quality status, providing important information on the anthropogenic impact of benthos.