Macrobenthic community structure of intertidal zone of Rushan Bay in spring

Quantitative study on macrobenthos was carried out in 8 transects along intertidal zone of Rushan Bay in May,2011. In total,116 macrobenthic species were identified,among which 58 were polychaetes,15 were mollusks,27 were crustaceans,3 were echinoderms and 13 were other groups. The average abundance and biomass of macrobenthos were 872. 6 ind · m-2and 9. 37g·m-2,respectively. By IRI index,Mediomastus sp.,Helice sheni,Nemertinea and Neanthes sp.were ranked as the top 4 dominant species in the study area. Average Margalef's species richness diversity( d),Shannon diversity( H) and Pielou's evenness index( J) of macrobenthos were2.119,2.384 and 0.608,respectively,indicating slight pollution in the study area. Based on 30%similarity level,8 transects could be grouped into 3 different communities. Compared with other intertidal zones in similar latitude,macrobenthos of Rushan Bay intertidal zone were characterized by higher species number,smaller body size and higher abundance. Besides the macrobenthic community structure and diversities,more exhaustive studies were needed to reveal the possible influence of shellfish culture on intertidal macrobenthic community.