Most seafloor communities at depths below the photosynthesis zone rely on food that sinks
through the water column. However, the nature and strength of this pelagic–benthic coupling
and its influence on the structure and diversity of seafloor communities is unclear, especially
around Antarctica where ecological data are sparse. Here we show that the strength of
pelagic–benthic coupling along the East Antarctic shelf depends on both physical processes
and the types of benthic organisms considered. In an approach based on modelling food …