Composición y distribución del macrobentos en la Ensenada de Sechura, Piura, Perú

It was analyzed the spatial distribution of the benthic macrofauna of the Bay of Sechura (5°12’ - 5°50’S and 81°12’ - 80°51’W) right after the end the 1997-98 El Niño. Temperature, dissolved oxygen, sand content (%), exhibited a decreasing trend from shallow to deep stations, while organic matter content, equitability and diversity increased with depth. The Polychaeta were the most abundant taxonomic group (81 %). The composition was very heterogenous at shallower depths (5 - 11 m), and the polychaete Polydora socialis tended to dominate in sandy and rocky bottoms with 54 %. Polychaetes from the family Capitellidae (17 %) dominated at intermediate depths (21 - 35 m), while the spionid polychaete Paraprionospio pinnata (27 %) was the dominant species at deeper locations (42-72 m). The dominant feeding guilds were surface deposit feeders and interface feeders. In comparison with information collected at the onset of El Niño 1997-98, there were differences in the composition of dominant species, especially at intermediate depths, but there were not found significant differences in the community parameters.