No abstract

Background: It is controversial to what extent the intrusion of the Kuroshio Branch Current to the Luzon Strait and the South China Sea circulation can shape copepod assemblages around southern Taiwan. We tested the hypothesis that currents such as the Kuroshio Current bring marine zooplankton and copepods from subtropical and tropical waters to the south of Taiwan. We studied copepod assemblages from the Bashi Channel in the northeastern South China Sea at the coast of southwest Taiwan during early October 1996. Results: A total of 77 copepod species were identified from 34 genera that included calanoids, cyclopoids, harpacticoids, and poecilostomatoids. Several indicator species suggest that the study area is highly influenced by water masses from the northern South China Sea as well as from the Kuroshio Current. Acrocalanus gracilis (Paracalanidae, Calanoida) was most abundant (with a relative abundance (RA) of 22.07 and an occurrence rate (OR) of 100%), followed by Paracalanus aculeatus (Paracalanidae, Calanoida) and Oncaea venusta (Cyclopoida). The stations close to the Kuroshio Current showed a higher species diversity (H') and a higher species richness with 3.9 to 4.6 at moderate abundance, whereas station 11 showed lowest species diversity (H') with (2.1), accompanied by the far lowest species number (14) and abundance (880 ind./100 m 3 ).