Samples were taken bimonthly from July 2008 through
May 2009 at five sampling stations (St1-St5), established
along the estuary of the Cachoeira River, and one (St6) in
front of the river mouth (Fig. 1), with depths between 1.5
and 5 m. At each sampling station, we obtained five sediment
samples for macrofauna and one for organic matter and
particle size, using a van Veen grab with an area of 0.12 m2,
during flood and high tides. With the aid of a van Dorn bottle,
water samples were collected near the bottom for the
measurements of temperature and salinity, taken aboard a
boat with a standard mercury thermometer and an Atago S/
Mill manual refractometer, respectively. Rainfall data for
this period were obtained from the Executive Commission
Plan of Cocoa Farming - CEPLAC, in Ilhéus.