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Cryofauna Cryofauna are animals that live in, or very close to, ice. Cryptofauna Cryptofauna are animals that are rarely seen and may be extinct or mythological. Epifauna Epifauna are non-photosynthetic, benthic organisms that live upon the surface of sediments or soils. Infauna Infauna are aquatic organisms (usually animals, but sometimes algae) that live within particulate media such as sediments or soil. They are most common in the subtidal and deeper zones. Macrofauna Macrofauna are benthic or soil organisms which are at least several centimeters in length. Megafauna Main article: Megafauna Megafauna are large animals of any particular region or time. For example, Australian megafauna. Meiofauna Meiofauna are small benthic invertebrates that live in both marine and fresh water environments. The term Meiofauna loosely defines a group of organisms by their size, larger than microfauna but smaller than macrofauna, rather than a taxonomic grouping. In practice these are organisms that can pass through a 1 mm mesh but will be retained by a 45 μm mesh, but the exact dimensions will vary from researcher to researcher. Whether an organism will pass through a 1 mm mesh will also depend upon whether it is alive or dead at the time of sorting. Mesofauna Mesofauna are macroscopic soil invertebrates such as arthropods, earthworms, and nematodes. Microfauna Microfauna are microscopic or very small animals (usually including protozoans and very small animals such as rotifers. Other Other terms include avifauna, which means "bird fauna" and piscifauna (or ichthyofauna), which means "fish fauna". Classic faunas See also | ||||||||||
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