FAUNAL DIVERSITY IN MALAYSIAN MANGROVES

Malaysian mangroves harbour a high diversity of benthic invertebrates, including polychaetes, gastropods, brachyurans, and sipunculids. In t hree sites at different points in the forest harvest cycle at Matang, the density and biomass of epifaunal taxa was found to be greatest in mature Rhizophora apiculata Lamk, forest, intermediate in a 15-year ol d stand, and lowest in recently cleared forest. The pattern in infauna l taxa was found to be different, with the greatest density and biomas s in the recently cleared site. A number of diversity indices highligh t the low diversity of epifaunal taxa in the recently cleared site, pe rhaps a consequence of the drier substrate surface in the absence of a tree canopy.