Secondary production of the eusirid amphipod Pontogeneia rostrata Gurjanova, 1938 (Crustacea: Peracarida) on a sandy shore in Korea

Abstract

The secondary production of the eusirid amphipod Pontogeneia rostrata Gurjanova, 1938, was examined on a sandy shore in Korea. Secondary production was estimated using a size-frequency method. The biomass structure of P. rostrata included one peak in spring, with maximum biomass occurring in April. The annual secondary production of this species was 0. 57 g DW m-2 yr-1 with an annual P/B ratio of 6. 97. Secondary production of P. rostrata fell within the range observed for other amphipods on intertidal sandy shores, although the production/biomass (P/B) ratio was higher than those recorded previously from the sampling site and from other tidal and estuary areas, as the number of generations increases the P/B ratio. The results showing high abundance and P/B ratios suggest that P. rostrata plays an important role in the sandy shore ecosystem as a trophic link between primary producers and higher consumers. © 2011 Korea Ocean Research & Development Institute (KORDI) and the Korean Society of Oceanography (KSO) and Springer Netherlands.