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Email the author (Login required) Community of copepods in the peri-urban estuary Arroyo Moreno, Veracruz southwest Gulf of Mexico
Submited: 2025-06-24 11:36:49 | Published: 2025-10-31 20:21:54
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3856/vol53-issue5-fulltext-3491
Abstract
Copepods represent between 70 and 90% of the planktonic biomass in the marine and coastal systems. The present study aims to increase knowledge about the abundance, distribution, and diversity of copepods in the Arroyo Moreno estuary, classified as a peri-urban system with high anthropogenic impact. We measured dissolved oxygen, water temperature, total dissolved solids, pH, and salinity in situ. The planktonic samples from six sites were collected during dry, cold fronts, and rainy weather conditions from the Arroyo Moreno estuary. The Arroyo Moreno estuary is a system with general hypoxic conditions (1.37 ± 1.89 mg L-1). The temperature was 32.45 ± 2.21°C. The values of total dissolved solids were greater than the maximum permissible limit (2,276.67 ± 621.7 ppm). The salinity presented values from 0.20 ± 0.07 to 15.95 ± 1.27. In the study, 10 species of copepods were found. The highest abundance occurred in May with 4,717 ind (during the dry season). The species with higher abundance were Acartia (Acanthacartia) tonsa and Paracalanus quasimodo. The highest diversity value was found in March, with 0.75 bits ind-1. The species A. (A.) tonsa represented 93% of the abundance of copepods found in the Arroyo Moreno estuary and was related to a euryoic response. The other species of copepods exhibited a coastal-marine affinity, spatially limiting their distribution to the Arroyo Moreno estuary. The diversity was significantly lower than what was recorded by other authors in other coastal systems. According to the results obtained, this study revealed a significant anthropocentric impact.
