Meiofauna

Question 1

How would you classify meiofauna?

Answer 1

Meiofauna are defined based on the standardised mesh size of sieves with 1000um and 20um as upper&lower limits

Question 2

How many meiofauna are there per m^-2?

Answer 2

A million

Question 3

What percentage of metazoan abundance of life on Earth do meiofauna represent?

Answer 3

80%

Question 4

What are two major functional roles of meiofauna in aquatic systems?

Answer 4

1. To serve as food for organisms higher in the food web
2. To facilitate mineralisation of organic material and nutrient regeneration