Epifaunas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A community of organisms, typically living on the surface of the seabed or aquatic substrates
2. organisms that inhabit the upper layer of the ocean floor ecosystem, interacting with their environment
3. biological assemblages found on or near the seabed, showcasing diverse species adapted to unique aquatic conditions

Etymology: "Epifaunas" is simply the plural of "epifauna," so the story is that of its two parts. "Fauna" is the Latin word for the animals of a region, and "epi-" comes from the Greek preposition "epí," meaning "on," "upon," or "over." Put together, the compound describes animals living on a surface rather than burrowing inside it, which is exactly what the term means in marine biology: animals that live on the seafloor, such as crabs, sea stars, and sponges attached to rock or sand, as opposed to those that live within the sediment. The Greek prefix "epi-" is one of the most productive combining forms in scientific vocabulary, and it appears in many words built the same way, such as "epiphyte," a plant growing on another plant. Scientists formed "epifauna" by joining it to the Latin "fauna," so the word is a modern coinage from classical parts rather than something ancient writers used.