RESEARCH ON SPECIES COMPOSITION AND DISTRIBUTION OF BENTHIC ANIMALS IN THE COASTAL ECOSYSTEM OF KIEN LUONG, KIEN GIANG PROVINCE (VIETNAM)

Research results have identified 173 species of coastal benthic Kien Luong, belonging to 122 genera, 75 families and 7 representative groups. Among the discovered species, Gastropod Molluscs have the highest number of species with 70 species, followed by bivalve molluscs with 51 species, crustaceans with 40 species. Other groups account for a lower proportion: Polychaeta has 9 species, Scaphopoda has 2 species, Cephalopoda and Chelicerata all have 1 species.               Distribution: The species composition of mangroves has 27 species, the average species weight is 15.8 g/m2, the average species density is 26.33 inds/m2, with a high biodiversity index of 3.57; The species composition of benthic organisms in the intertidal zone has 48 species, the average species weight is 42.71 g/m2, the average species density is 510.42 inds/m2, the relative biodiversity index is 2.83.