List of macrobenthic species: Data from the siberian seas and the adjacent area of the deep-sea central arctic

An annotated species list of all macrobenthic invertebrates inhabiting the Siberian sector of the Arctic Ocean is presented. The area considered includes the Kara, Laptev and East Siberian seas and the adjacent region of the deep-sea Central Arctic. Entries on species occurrences in the database are supported by corresponding references. Species of Polychaeta, Crustacea and Echinodermata in addition contain information on bathymetric distribution. Apart from published data, 12 taxa were identified in the area for the first time. In total 1574 macrobenthic species were recorded within the considered area. The most species rich was the Kara Sea with 1184 species. The Laptev and East Siberian seas and the Central Arctic showed lower species richness with correspondingly 1105, 780 and 268 species. The much smaller numbers of species in the East Siberian Sea and in the deep-sea Central Arctic can be related to taxonomic impoverishment or/and much smaller study effort in those regions.