Species Composition of the Benthic Macroinvertebrates on the Coastline Vegetated Rocky Substrates of the Southern Caspian Sea

For studying benthic macrofaunal composition associated with seagrass rocky beds of the southern Caspian Sea, two time samplings were carried out along the coast line in the winter and summer of 2013. In total, 1,286 specimens of the five species were identified: Pontogammarus maeoticus, Balanus improvisus, Mytilaster lineatus, Palaemon elegans and Alitta succinea. The total recorded abundance was 5,675 and 755 ind./m², with a biomass of 147,271 and 31,238 mg/m² in the winter and summer respectively. The collected species in this study are generally non-indigenous (except P. maeoticus) and could potentially have an effect on native benthic fauna, as an additional food source could facilitate the commercially exploited fish stocks. Thus further studies are required to monitor their potential interactions on the Caspian Sea fauna