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<p>The Lakshadweep Archipelago, a tropical carbonate platform in the northeastern Arabian Sea, features diverse and understudied benthic habitats. This study provides the first integrated analysis of meiofaunal and nematode community structure across its topographic features, investigating how environmental gradients shape taxonomic and functional diversity. We sampled 11 stations (depth 18–200&#xa0;m) encompassing rocky, sandy, and mixed substrates. Meiofauna was dominated by nematodes (91.9%), and both density and diversity increased along a substrate-energy gradient, from low values on rocky reef summits to the highest in sandy depositional zones. Multivariate analyses revealed strong habitat partitioning, with sediment granulometry (fine sand%) being the primary driver of community structure (BIOENV, <i>ρ</i> = 0.885). Functional trait composition showed a non-random distribution: sediment communities within rocky reef habitats were characterized by small-bodied, elongated nematodes with striated cuticles and selective deposit-feeding strategies, while sandy sediments hosted assemblages dominated by epistrate feeders and predators/omnivores with different morphological adaptations. Machine learning (Random Forest) identified cuticle morphology, spicule size, and adhesive structures as the most predictive traits for classifying habitat types. These results demonstrate that deterministic assembly processes, driven by substrate heterogeneity and associated organic matter, filter for distinct functional traits, which are manifested in the observed taxonomic turnover. This trait-based approach provides a mechanistic understanding of benthic community assembly on carbonate platforms and establishes a critical baseline for assessing the ecology of vulnerable tropical carbonate systems.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>

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Taxonomic and functional diversity of nematode assemblages across the substrate gradient of the Lakshadweep carbonate platform

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年5月9日

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  • Ravail Singh,
  • Harshpreet Kaur,
  • Dinesh Ramadoss

摘要

The Lakshadweep Archipelago, a tropical carbonate platform in the northeastern Arabian Sea, features diverse and understudied benthic habitats. This study provides the first integrated analysis of meiofaunal and nematode community structure across its topographic features, investigating how environmental gradients shape taxonomic and functional diversity. We sampled 11 stations (depth 18–200 m) encompassing rocky, sandy, and mixed substrates. Meiofauna was dominated by nematodes (91.9%), and both density and diversity increased along a substrate-energy gradient, from low values on rocky reef summits to the highest in sandy depositional zones. Multivariate analyses revealed strong habitat partitioning, with sediment granulometry (fine sand%) being the primary driver of community structure (BIOENV, ρ = 0.885). Functional trait composition showed a non-random distribution: sediment communities within rocky reef habitats were characterized by small-bodied, elongated nematodes with striated cuticles and selective deposit-feeding strategies, while sandy sediments hosted assemblages dominated by epistrate feeders and predators/omnivores with different morphological adaptations. Machine learning (Random Forest) identified cuticle morphology, spicule size, and adhesive structures as the most predictive traits for classifying habitat types. These results demonstrate that deterministic assembly processes, driven by substrate heterogeneity and associated organic matter, filter for distinct functional traits, which are manifested in the observed taxonomic turnover. This trait-based approach provides a mechanistic understanding of benthic community assembly on carbonate platforms and establishes a critical baseline for assessing the ecology of vulnerable tropical carbonate systems.

Graphical abstract