Benthic communities of the shrimp (Penaeus notialis) grounds off Grand-Bassam, Cote-d'Ivoire, exhibit distinct variations, correlated to annual changes in hydroclimate, characterized by warm and cold (upwelling) seasons. These changes appear to be the result of the well-defined reproduction periods of many short-living benthic species, as clearly shown by the peaks of abundance in the samples, at different times of the year, but quite often at the end of the cold and the beginning of the warm seasons (September-November). Many species show marked diel rhythms, either diurnal (pagurids, brachyurans) or nocturnal (macrurans, brachyurans, molluscs), so that the species composition displays distinct differences between day and night samples (February 1970... |