A surf zone is defined here as the moving water
envelope from the water up-rush on the shore to the
most seaward breaker. The hyperbenthos is the association
of small animals living in the water layer
close to the sea bed (Mees & Jones, 1997). Studies on
these small organisms within the surf zones are very
scarce. While several taxonomic papers describe
species collected on sandy beaches, few of them
sampled the surf zone or include ecological notes
(reviewed by McLachlan, 1983). Moreover, ecological
studies rarely describe whole assemblages, they are
mostly restricted to the ecology of one species