Benthic response of Munnopsurus atlanticus (Crustacea Isopoda) to the carbon content of the near-bottom sedimentary environment on the southern margin of the Cap-Ferret Canyon (Bay of Biscay, northeastern Atlantic Ocean)

The response of benthic organisms to organic carbon fluxes in a continental margin region was studied by investigating the diet of the suprabenthic is opod Munnopsurus atlanticus, which is well represented on the southern marg in of the Cap-Ferret Canyon (Bay of Biscay). The grain-size distribution, f oraminiferal assemblages, particulate organic carbon and pigments found in the sediment and in the gut of the isopods were analyzed. These results sug gest that M. atlanticus feeds on benthic agglutinated foraminifers which ar e in a high "nourishment state" and represent a link between primary and se condary producers. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.