Biomass and secondary production of the three dominant amphipods (Crustacea) in a temperate sandy shore, southern Korea

In sand beaches the benthic macrofauna feeding on primary food sources such as detritus and phytoplankton and being prey in turn for top predators such as fishes occupies a key position in the center of food chains. Amphipods are the most productive bentho-pelagic animals (Barnard, 1963) and are commonly consumed by fishes and larger crustaceans (Vetter, 1995). Consequently, amphipods play an important role in energy flow as a trophic link from primary producers to higher consumers(Chiaravalle et al., 1997).