• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.272-286
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• 2014

This study was performed to investigate the community structure and health assessment of macrobenthic assemblages in Cheonsu Bay, West Coast of Korea. Total species number was 224 and mean density was $1,940ind./m^2$, both of which were dominated by polychaete worms (111 species and $1,213ind./m^2$). In terms of density, the major dominant species were the bivalve Theora fragilis ($280{\pm}213ind./m^2$), the polychaetes Heteromastus filiformis ($254{\pm}218ind./m^2$), Lumbrineris longifolia ($216{\pm}41ind./m^2$), Mediomastus californiensis ($158{\pm}97ind./m^2$) and the amphipod Eriopisella sechellensis ($167{\pm}100ind./m^2$). As a result of community statistics (cluster analysis and nMDS ordination), the macrobenthic community structure was classified two major groups (inner and mouth of bay) and two stations (station 2 near Ganwol dyke in spring and summer). The Benthic Pollution Index (BPI) and AZTI's Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) were applied to assess the benthic ecological status. During the sampling periods, the BPI Index values varied between 11 (bad status) and 92 (high status). On the other hand, the AMBI Index values was ranged between 1.34 (good status) and 4.39 (poor status). In conclusion, in terms of the mean BPI and AMBI Index values, the ecological status of Cheonsu Bay were moderate status (ecotone stage) and good status, respectively.