Spatial Distribution and Community Structure of Macrobenthos on the Sandy Shore of Anmyeondo, Korea

The western coast of Anmyeondo is open toward the Yellow sea and the northern and southern coasts are sandy and have simple coastlines. In this study, we investigated the spatial distribution and community structure of the macrobenthos that inhabit the sandy shore of Anmyeondo. For the study, we chose 8 sites encompassing 44 stations. In total, we have recorded 62 species, and collected 747 inds./m2 on average. Zonation pattern did not appear because the mean grain size and organic contents of the study sites were similar among the macrobenthos. Polychaetes were most frequently recorded, but amphipods appeared in higher mean density. Macrobenthic community is classified into 3 groups largely based on the density difference among the dominant species and the groups were not influenced by environmental factors. The aggregated distribution of macrobenthos did not show a clear regional spatial difference but exhibited classification pattern emphasizing the density difference of the dominant species. The sandy shores of Anmyeondo are relatively more influenced by waves compared to other regions and the sediment moves more due to strong winds, etc. at low tide. We presume that the movement of sediment resulted in a relatively even sedimentary environment and consequently weakened environmental variables that change with the tide level. We concluded that the macrobenthic community does not show the zonation pattern in the sandy shores of Anmyeondo due to such influences.