The Impact of Pollution on the Meroplankton of Gaidamak Bight (Vostok Bay,Sea of Japan)

The taxonomic composition, concentration, and distribution of meroplankton have been studied in Gaidamak Bight, Peter the Great Bay, chronically exposed to anthropogenic impact. It has been demonstrated that, in addition to larvae of benthic invertebrates resistant to pollution, the larvae of other species are always abundant in the bight. They drift with currents from neighboring clean water areas, thus maintaining the high reproductive potential of meroplankton in the bight. Therefore, if this water area was cleared of pollutants, it could be populated again by species that have disappeared from it.