P. V. Rybnikov, S. G. Poyarkov, and A. V. Drits
Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
Received May 21, 1998; in final form, November 11, 1998
Abstract—Studies of the bottom communities in a salt lagoon of St. Paul Island revealed a rather complex pat-
tern of distribution of the bottom fauna. The bottom ecosystem of this relatively small saline basin (slightly
greater than 0.5 km2) includes several bottom communities differing in their quantitative and qualitative popu-
lation composition. This structure was formed under the influence of the interrelations within a set of environ-
mental factors (peculiarities of sedimentation, tidal and wind water transport, and bottom topography). A
detailed chemical analysis of the sediments revealed that the bottom sediments contain organic matter of both
marine and terrestrial origin. In different parts of the lagoon, the contribution of organic matter of different gen-
esis significantly differs; this was reflected in the distribution of the bottom fauna. The influence of the environ-
mental factors on the structure of the bottom ecosystem of the salt lagoon is discussed.
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