Abstract
Megacrustacean epibenthic assemblages of the continental shelf of Campeche Sound were analyzed using multivariate analysis. Seven cruises were done during 1994 (May, August, November) and 1995 (February, May, August and November). Benthic samples were obtained with a semicommercial trawl net (18.3 meters of mouth aperture and 2.5cm mesh size) in a depth range of 14 to 215 m. A total of 11,113 megacrustaceans belonging to 55 species and 24 families was recorded. Total biomass weighted 173.28 kg. Leucosiidae, Penaeidae and Portunidae families were the most abundant in species number and represented 27% of total species. Diversity, dominance and equitability indexes did not show marked variations either in climatic periods or between years. Depth and sediment type were the first and second environmental factors that mainly explained megacrustacean biomass and density variations. Shallow megacrustaceans assemblages were more numerous and differed clearly from the deep one. This can be attributed to substrate heterogeneity of shallow areas that have a transition zone between lime-clay and carbonate sediments.
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