The meiofaunal assemblages of rocky shore site in the Taklong Island National Marine Reserve, Southern Guimaras, West Central Philippines

Owing to their small size and difficult taxonomic identification, meiofauna are often neglected as part of the benthic ecosystem. Most of the studies done on meiofauna have been limited to soft bottom intertidal or subtidal areas and very few were done on rocky shores. This study was done to characterize the meiofaunal assemblages of a rocky shore site in Southern Guimaras, west central Philippines as part of a long-term sampling program. Following the Natural Geography in Shore Areas (NaGISA) sampling protocol, four transects (3 intertidal and 1 subtidal), along the depth gradient of high tide (HT), mid-tide (MT), low tide (LT), and 1 m subtidal (ST), with 5 replicates each, were laid parallel to the shore of the mainland. Meiofaunal assemblages were sampled in August 2011 and October 2012. The percentages of macroalgal cover and biomass were also calculated. Predominating taxa in both surveys were quite consistent, i.e., harpacticoids, nematodes, syllid polychaetes and tanaid crustaceans. Except for the nematodes and chironomids, densities of the remaining dominant taxa (harpacticoids, crustaceans, and polychaetes) generally increased with depth, and showed a strong correlation with macroalgal biomass, further reflecting the depth-correlated higher availability of microhabitats and shelter from predators, as well as the decrease in the negative effects of hydrodynamic forces. Overall mean annual densities (2.1 ± 1.9 ind. cm-2) from the site proved to be lower compared with those in reported studies conducted in other rocky shore and intertidal habitats.