High freezing tolerance of marine nematodes from intertidal sediments of the German Bight.

Wadden sea nematodes survive for 24 hours at -5°C in their original sediment; at -10°C 37% of the population still survived. A few species can tolerate temperatures of -20°C for 24 hours or longer. The degree of cold resistance of these nematodes is related to their ability to withstand the osmotic stress that occurs during the freezing process. The euryhaline species Ascolaimus elongatus (Buetschli) survived exposures to -20°C for at least 48 hours.