Fish communities from geomorphologically different mangrove forests showed distinct trophic structures. A mangrove area located near fringing reefs (Bouraké) was dominated by large invertebrate (> 2 mm) feeders (40.7% of total wet weight of the fish fauna) and herbivores (26.7%) whilst an estuarine mangrove (Ouenghi) was characterized by detritus feeders (28.2%), piscivorous (18.2%) and large invertebrate feeders (17.9%). In spite of these differences in trophic structure, similar food webs occurred in both areas, whereas the intensity of fluxes between trophic compartments was different. Resident species were usually at the base of the trophic structure. This component of the fish fauna used available sources of energy, such as microalgae in Bouraké or detritus and phytoplankton in Ouenghi. In contrast, transient species were high level predators, mainly piscivorous and large invertebrate feeders. These species actively contributed to net exports of energy from mangrove areas to nearby coastal habitats. Food webs and energy fluxes associated with trophic migration of fishes were particularly important in non-estuarine mangrove forests because of hydrologic conditions (salinity and turbidity) which were more suitable to the invasion of numerous marine foraging species (carangids, lutjanids, sphyraenids).
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0764-4469(00)88531-5 | DOI Listing |
Sci Data
December 2024
Marine Science Program, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955-6900, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Red Sea elasmobranch populations are facing alarming declines. Effective conservation efforts require management strategies informed by extensive datasets and by developing an understanding of distribution patterns within the basin, which is currently lacking. This study introduces CERSE (Central and Eastern Red Sea Elasmobranchs), a comprehensive compilation of elasmobranch observations in the central and eastern Red Sea basin following the route of the Red Sea Decade Expedition.
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December 2024
State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
Actinopterygians (ray-finned fishes) successfully passed through the Permian-Triassic Mass Extinction (PTME) and flourished in the Triassic with diverse feeding specializations and occupation of various trophic levels. , one of the largest actinopterygian fish of the Triassic, was characterized by a strong, blunt rostrum and three rows of sharp cutting-edged teeth, making them the top predators in the Early Mesozoic oceanic ecosystem. These fishes rapidly radiated and diversified globally during the Early and Middle Triassic, but the fossil record is rare for the Neo-Tethys in the Late Triassic.
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December 2024
Department of Biology, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA, United States.
Neotropical Freshwater Fish (NFF) fauna exhibits the greatest phenotypic disparity and species richness among all continental aquatic vertebrate faunas, with more than 6,345 species distributed across the mostly tropical regions of Central and South America. The last two decades have seen a proliferation of molecular phylogenies, often at the species level, covering almost all 875 valid NFF genera. This study presents the most comprehensive genome-wide, time-calibrated phylogenetic hypothesis of NFF species to date, based on DNA sequences generated over decades through the collaborative efforts of the multinational ichthyological research community.
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December 2024
Center for Advanced Technical and Educational Supports, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 819-0395, Japan.
A unique species of the flappy-snake eel genus, , is described based on a single specimen (270 mm in total length) collected from Dong-gang, southwestern Taiwan. The new species possesses several characters that are distinct from the only other species in the genus, . can be easily distinguished from by having two papillae inside of nasal tube (vs three in ), 25 branchiostegal rays (vs 29), the dorsal-fin origin positioned behind the tip of the pectoral fin (vs not behind, usually above mid-pectoral fin), and the absence of the maxillary teeth (vs present).
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December 2024
Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.
Dongsha Island, situated in the northern part of the South China Sea, is surrounded by coral reefs and deep-sea habitats. The coastal areas of the atoll, a marine protected area, serve as important nursery habitats for many reef fish species. At the same time, the offshore deep-sea continental slopes are historically important fishing grounds.
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