This study aimed to investigate the meiofauna community characteristics in coastal waters affected by ocean acidification. Therefore, the meiofauna communities in the coastal waters of Hupo in Uljin-gun, which showed a high ocean acidification trend in the integrated data on the coastal areas of South Korea for the previous ten years, were monitored over five years. During the study period, the mean abundance of total meiofauna communities expressed in population density was 614 individuals (Inds.)/10 cm2. The most dominant taxa were nematodes (65–70%) and harpacticoids (7–20%); these two taxa accounted for approximately 80% of the total meiofauna abundance. Station (St.) 5 and 10, which had the lowest seawater pH values, showed the lowest average abundance values for harpacticoids (average 46 Inds./10 cm2) and nauplius (average 4 Inds./10 cm2) among the major meiofaunal groups over the 5-year period. In addition, St. 5 indicated the lowest meiofaunal diversity index of 0.54. To examine the effect of ocean acidification on meiofauna communities at the species level, species of nematodes, the most dominant taxon, were analyzed. The results indicated that the number of nematode species at St. 10, one of the two stations with the lowest pH, was the lowest compared to those at other stations. Analysis of c-p values for nematode species showed that both species sensitive to environmental disturbance and species resistant to environmental pollution appeared at high rates. According to the feeding type of nematodes, epistrate feeders accounted for a remarkably high proportion at St. 10. This study provides various data on meiofauna community characteristics to understand the effects of ocean acidification on coastal ecosystems.
Oh J. H., Kang T., Shin A. Y. & Kim D., 2026. Characteristics of meiofaunal community in the subtidal zone near Hupo, anticipating ocean acidification on the coast of Korea. Thalassas: An International Journal of Marine Sciences 42: 58. doi: 10.1007/s41208-026-01077-5. Article.
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