Fish nursery value of algae habitats in temperate coastal reefs

Hinz, Hilmar; Reñones, Olga; Gouraguine, Adam; Johnson, Andrew F.; Moranta, Joan

doi:10.7717/peerj.6797

Cited by 16 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…Habitat and seascape tri-dimensional structure can be qualified by its heterogeneity and complexity 90 , 91 . Generally high quality habitats for juvenile fishes are recognized to be associated with high degrees of three-dimensional structuration 92 , in terms of both complexity 51 , 53 , 93 , 94 and/or heterogeneity 42 . Natural rocky habitats (RS) presented a high structural and biological complexity due to different macrophytes assemblages, and indeed supported the highest mean species richness and abundance of juvenile fishes in the two sampling period (cold and warm).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the higher abundance of juveniles in seagrass bed habitats and rocky substrates during the warm period could be related to the greater protection and food resources provided by the greater canopy height of Posidonia oceanica and macroalgae communities 50 , 51 , 53 . The role of highly complex Cystoseira forest canopies with regard to the composition of juvenile fish assemblage was well studied by Cheminée et al 50 , 51 , Cuadros et al 52 and Hinz et al 53 , who demonstrated that Symphodus spp., Labrus spp. and Serranus spp.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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All shallow coastal habitats matter as nurseries for Mediterranean juvenile fish

Cheminée

Diréach

Rouanet

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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Coastal zones are ecosystems of high economic value but exposed to numerous disturbances, while they represent nurseries for many fish species, raising the issue of the preservation of their functions and services. In this context, the juvenile fish assemblages of all types of habitats present in shallow coastal zones were studied on the south-east coast of France using underwater visual censuses in warm (June–July 2014) and cold (April 2015) periods. A total of fourteen habitat types were characterized, which could be grouped into three broad categories, rocky substrates (natural and artificial), sedimentary bottoms with all levels of granulometry, and seagrass beds including Cymodocea nodosa and Posidonia oceanica meadows; the ecotones or interfaces between the three broad habitat categories were individualized as particular habitat types. The abiotic and biotic descriptors of the 14 habitat types individualized did not vary with time, except for a higher cover percentage and canopy height of macrophytes in the warm period, which increased the three-dimensional structure of some habitats. The taxonomic composition and density of juvenile fish assemblages were analyzed using both multivariate and univariate descriptors, after grouping the 57 fish species recorded into 41 well-individualized taxa. Juvenile fishes were recorded in all habitat types, with higher mean species richness and abundance during the warm than the cold period. The richest habitats in terms of both fish species richness and abundance were the natural rocky substrates and the interfaces between Posidonia beds and the other habitats. Although juvenile fish assemblage composition differed among habitat types and between periods, the most abundant fish species were Atherina sp., Sarpa salpa, Gobiidae, Symphodus spp., Pagellus spp. and several Diplodus species, which colonized 7 up to 14 different habitat types (depending on taxa) during their juvenile life. Most species settled in one or a few specific habitats but rapidly colonized adjacent habitats when growing. This study provided evidence of the role of all types of shallow coastal habitats as fish nurseries and their varying pattern of occupation in space and time by the different juvenile stages. It highlighted the importance of the mosaic of habitats and interfaces for the complete development of all juvenile life stages of fishes, and for the preservation of a high diversity of coastal fish assemblages and fisheries resources in the Mediterranean Sea.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

All shallow coastal habitats matter as nurseries for Mediterranean juvenile fish

Cheminée

Diréach

Rouanet

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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“…It is also important to mention the small, resident species that also have ecological significance in the benthic communities of transitional waters, e.g., Salaria pavo, S. ocellatus, and Z. ophiocephalus, as these herbivorous and omnivorous fishes seem to control both algae and invertebrates in rocky sub-littoral zones (Ruitton et al, 2000). S. ocellatus showed a significant association with an algal habitat, and its abundance can certainly be related to the strong seasonal differences in algal cover (Hinz et al, 2019). If species preferring transitional waters at higher latitudes also spawn in winter and/or early spring, such as D. vulgaris, D. sargus, S. aurata and D. labrax, this makes them particularly sensitive to interannual differences in environmental conditions.…”

Section: More Sensitive Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Coastal areas are commonly acknowledged as highly productive and valuable ecosystems that provide many favourable habitats for fish, while also supporting fundamental ecological links with other environments (Duarte, 2000;Beck et al, 2001;Hinz et al, 2019). Their role in early life stages, and also as foraging and spawning grounds for non-coastal fish species (Harmelin-Vivien, 1984;Francour et al, 1999) is recognised throughout the Mediterranean and worldwide (Francour, 1997;Deudero et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Interannual Environmental Changes on Juvenile Fish Settlement in Coastal Nurseries: The Case of the Adriatic Sea

et al. 2022

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This study tested generality in the settlement and recruitment patterns of juvenile fish in the coastal Mediterranean as driven by interannual environmental differences. A multivariate analysis of juvenile fish community data, sampled over three consecutive years, was conducted to elucidate the interannual changes of new settlers’ occurrence and abundance in different nurseries along the eastern Adriatic coast. Sites were assigned to four groups of nurseries based on water type (marine or transitional) and geographical position (north or south). Statistically significant interannual differences were found in temperature but not in salinity. In general, species occurrence significantly fluctuated between years and seasons. The highest total abundance of juveniles was observed in the significantly warmer year 2018 within all study groups. Defined groups expressed significant annual differences in species richness and abundance related to variations in water temperature and salinity as environmental factors for the same consecutive years. Nurseries within transitional waters in the north are more prone to interannual water temperature changes. The associated community composition differed most from those recorded in southern marine waters, where groups were mostly defined by salinity influence and were least sensitive to interannual temperature fluctuations. The cold and rainy spring in 2019 caused late settlement and longer retention of specific economically and ecologically important fish species in the nurseries. The results suggested that settlers’ delay or retention due to negative temperature deviation in the spawning period were linked to the nurseries located in the northern transitional waters that are under a stronger coastal influence. These delays can have ecological consequences on population dynamics and on inter- and intraspecific relationships within specific nursery communities.

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“…It could be interesting to integrate algal cover, which can be a proxy of complexity (Cuadros et al, 2019), such as the cover of Cystoseira sensu lato, in order to simultaneously consider the complexity of the inert substrate but also the complexity built by species such as in macrophytes forests or biogenic reefs, as well as with the depth factor. In addition, it is known that many fishes graze on epilithic algae (Gratwicke and Speight, 2005;Hinz et al, 2019), and that Cystoseira may provide preferred habitats for coastal fishes throughout their life stages (Lejeune, 1987;Rodrigues, 2010;Cheminée et al, 2013;Thiriet et al, 2014Thiriet et al, , 2016Thibaut et al, 2017;Hinz et al, 2019).…”

Section: Teleost Assemblagesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Three-Dimensional Structure of Mediterranean Shallow Rocky Reefs: Use of Photogrammetry-Based Descriptors to Assess Its Influence on Associated Teleost Assemblages

Monfort

Cheminée

Bianchimani³

et al. 2021

Front. Mar. Sci.

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In the Mediterranean Sea, shallow rocky reefs and the associated three-dimensional (3D) structure support rich and abundant communities; they are therefore of functional importance, in particular for the renewal of fish stocks. However, these habitats and their functions are likely to be altered by anthropogenic pressures inducing habitat transformations. It is therefore necessary to assess their 3D structure, their transformations and relationship to communities, especially for management and conservation purposes. In this article we aimed (i) to compare two methods that quantify the metrics of the 3D structure (rugosity) of shallow rocky reefs (chain-and-tape method and photogrammetry), and (ii) to quantify the possible links between this habitat structure and the fish assemblages. We found that photogrammetry and the chain-and-tape method yielded a similar estimate of rugosity, but photogrammetry was the most efficient method in terms of measurement quality and time (when considering in-water acquisition). This method also displayed the best repeatability. The 3D habitat descriptors (mean surface rugosity, variation of surface rugosity, and depth) differed significantly between the studied sites and were therefore included as covariables. Total fish abundance and species richness increased with higher mean surface rugosity. In addition, the composition of fish assemblages was significantly influenced by surface rugosity, although this effect was modulated by depth. When focusing on specific taxa, neither density patterns nor size class distributions displayed clear patterns in relation to rugosity metrics. However, this study demonstrated that spatial variability of teleost fish assemblages can be explained by habitat rugosity which probably increases the number of shelters and food resources, and therefore improves chances of survival. In addition, our study has shown that photogrammetry is an appropriate method to assess 3D structure metrics in a temperate rocky reef.

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Fish nursery value of algae habitats in temperate coastal reefs

Cited by 16 publications

References 72 publications

All shallow coastal habitats matter as nurseries for Mediterranean juvenile fish

All shallow coastal habitats matter as nurseries for Mediterranean juvenile fish

Effects of Interannual Environmental Changes on Juvenile Fish Settlement in Coastal Nurseries: The Case of the Adriatic Sea

The Three-Dimensional Structure of Mediterranean Shallow Rocky Reefs: Use of Photogrammetry-Based Descriptors to Assess Its Influence on Associated Teleost Assemblages

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