The depth distribution of Ostracoda from the Greenland Sea

Abstract. Sixteen box core samples of Recent sediment collected in three transects across the East Greenland shelf and slope were analysed for Ostracoda. The samples which range in depth from 274 m to 3355 m, yielded a total of 52 species belonging to 25 genera. No less than 26 of the species also occur in the adjacent Scoresby Sund fjord complex. The fauna represents an interesting mixture of high latitude shallow water Arctic species and others known from bathyal and abyssal depths in the North Atlantic, including some pandemic deep sea species. Many species occur in shallower water here than in the North Atlantic due to the colder water. The fauna comprised of three associations (Shelf/Upper Slope; Slope: Lower Slope/Abyss). A marked faunal turnover occurs at the Upper Slope. The study raises questions concerning the constancy and universality of the relationship between certain ostracod species and water masses.