merged

Distribution and Diversity of Gelatinous Zooplankton in the South
China Sea
Nur Aqilah Binti Kamaruddin
Supervisor: Dr. Nurul Huda Binti Ahmad Ishak
Bachelor of Sciences (Marine Biology)
School of Marine and Environmental Science
Nowadays, dominant groups of gelatinous zooplankton are widely distributed
in many ocean ecosystems. Nevertheless, they have been understudied due to
their fragility nature, difficulties to sample or handle and a lack of expertise.
This study gives an insight of the distribution and diversity of gelatinous species
in the South China Sea. Species composition, distribution and abundance of
gelatinous zooplankton were investigated along the East Coast of Peninsular
Malaysia (ECPM) in August 2016. Altogether, 38 species were identified in the
study area. Appendicularia was found to be the most dominant taxa recorded
while scyphomedusae were the least represented group in the study. Stations
that are near to inshore region show higher abundance of gelatinous
zooplankton compared to offshore region. According to Principal Component
Analysis (PCA), between four environmental variables examined (depth,
temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen), it showed that the distribution of
gelatinous zooplankton are driven by depth and temperature.
1788 | UMT UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH DAY 2018