| description |
A large-scale biogeographic study of copepods is challenging in the tropical and subtropical Pacific due to inaccessibility, high species diversity and limitation by morphological identification. In this study, spatial patterns of epipelagic copepod community structure was revealed using 28S metagenetic method at 19 stations in Kuroshio, North Pacific subtropical gyre, eastern tropical Pacific and South Pacific subtropical gyre. The copepod communities were the most correlated to chlorophyll a, and community structure in subtropical gyres was different from those in Kuroshio and eastern tropical Pacific. The metagenetic analysis also could detect copepod diversity, and high copepod diversity was observed in oligotrophic North and South Pacific subtropical gyres with peak in North Pacific subtropical gyre. This is first metagenetic study of copepods covering wide-area and could serve as a basis of the understanding of diversity and biogeography of copepods in the tropical and subtropical Pacific. |