The Community Structure of Coral Reef Fishes

Anderson, G. R. V.; Ehrlich, Anne H.; Ehrlich, Paul R.; Roughgarden, Jonathan; Russell, Barry C.; Talbot, F. H.

doi:10.1086/283729

Cited by 174 publications

(103 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…A species that disperses over intermediate distances (species 2) persists at low levels (<5%) throughout the system. Interestingly, species dominance patterns observed on the GBR also exhibit cross-shelf structure that has been maintained over decades (2,29,30). Dispersal in the GBR lagoon is dominated by longshore, rather than cross-shelf larval transport (31).…”

Section: Biophysical Dispersal Patternsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…It has been variously ascribed to subtle partitioning of resource niches (2,3); the mediating effects of predators, parasites, and infectious diseases (4,5); conspecific aggregation (6, 7); and temporal variation, both in environmental conditions and resource dynamics (8)(9)(10)(11)(12). In metacommunities where suitable habitat has a patchy spatial distribution, the process of dispersal can allow species to coexist locally if each has a competitive advantage on a different patch (13) or when superior dispersal abilities allow the fugitive persistence of competitively subordinate species (14).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Different dispersal abilities allow reef fish to coexist

Bode

Armsworth

2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The coexistence of multiple species on a smaller number of limiting resources is an enduring ecological paradox. The mechanisms that maintain such biodiversity are of great interest to ecology and of central importance to conservation. We describe and prove a unique and robust mechanism for coexistence: Species that differ only in their dispersal abilities can coexist, if habitat patches are distributed at irregular distances. This mechanism is straightforward and ecologically intuitive, but can nevertheless create complex coexistence patterns that are robust to substantial environmental stochasticity. The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is noted for its diversity of reef fish species and its complex arrangement of reef habitat. We demonstrate that this mechanism can allow fish species with different pelagic larval durations to stably coexist in the GBR. Further, coexisting species on the GBR often dominate different subregions, defined primarily by cross-shelf position. Interspecific differences in dispersal ability generate similar coexistence patterns when dispersal is influenced by larval behavior and variable oceanographic conditions. Many marine and terrestrial ecosystems are characterized by patchy habitat distributions and contain coexisting species that have different dispersal abilities. This coexistence mechanism is therefore likely to have ecological relevance beyond reef fish.

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Section: Biophysical Dispersal Patternsmentioning

confidence: 96%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Different dispersal abilities allow reef fish to coexist

Bode

Armsworth

2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…In some cases, specialist soft coral predators such as Chaetodon melannotus feed upon some of the most ichthyotoxic octocoral species with impunity (Randall 1967, Anderson et al 1981, Motta 1988, Alino 1989.…”

Section: Co-evolved Feeding Relationshipsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical adaptations in the Octocorallia: evolutionary considerations

Sammarco¹,

Coll²

1992

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

105

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The Octocorallia are a highly diverse group, rich in secondary compounds which serve several ecological functions, including predator defense, interspecific competition for space, antifouling, and reproduction. The Alcyonacea are characterized by high frequencies of ichthyotoxicity and feeding deterrence which are not generally correlated with each other. This may be due to the multiple functions these compounds perform, m a s l n g correlations which would otherwise be apparent. Correlations between ichthyotoxicity and physical defense exist, but only at higher levels of taxonomic resolution. One resultant selective advantage of varlance in ichthyotoxlcity and feeding deterrence may be Diffuse Batesian Mimicry, whereby the toxic or feeding-deterrent characteristics of a majority of species help to protect a taxon with a small number of general morphological types and small variance in coloration from generalist predators. Surface-brooded planulae of Indo-Pacific coral species, similar in appearance but not possessing toxic or feeding deterrent attributes, may be similarly protected. The chemical characters of octocorals may serve the same functions which morphological characters in scleractinian corals serve, particularly in predator defense and competition for space. Most octocorals lack a rigid skeleton possessed by scleractinians, which can protect polyps from predation. Octocorals also lack toxic stinging nenlatocysts common to scleractinians, but possess allelopathic capabilities. In some octocorals, 'non-toxic' nematocysts on sweeper tentacles may still be effective in competition for space; in others, aggressive interactions can be avoided through re-orientation or movement, resulting in directed growth. Octocoral orders are distributed inequitably between the tropical Atlantic and Indo-Pacific. The Gorgonacea dominate the former; the Alcyonacea. the latter. Octocoral species diversity is higher in the western Indo-Pacific, as is the abundance and diversity of secondary rnetabolites and their functions. This may be a result of differential levels of extinction between the 2 regions dunng the early Miocene and the late Pliocene/early Pleistocene, with high extinction rates having been experienced in the Caribbean. These extinctions may also have affected radiation in the secondary metabolites produced by those species and the functions which those rnetabolites serve. Secondary metabolites appear to have contributed to the evolutionary success of the Indo-Pacific Alcyonacea. In accordance with the Time-Stability hypothesis, we believe that this high abundance and diversity evolved in the Indo-Pacific under conditions of reduced climatic change and lower extinction levels, when compared to the Caribbean.

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“…A second issue is whether reef organisms are space-limited (i.e. limited by competitive interactions on reefs; Anderson et al 1981, Shulman et al 1983, Shulman 1984 or recruitment-limited (i.e. limited by the number of larvae surviving the plankton; Doherty 1981, Victor 1983.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recruitment and population recovery of Diadema antillarum (Echinodermata; Echinoidea) in Barbados

Hunte¹,

Younglao²

1988

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Populahon recovery of D~a d e m a antrllarum following the Canbbean-wide mass mortality of the urchin in 1983 is documented In Barbados Recrultnlent (urchins 10 to 15 mm test diameter) occurred 3 to 4 mo after peak spawning Recruts settled near the front (offshore) of reefs and were aggregated \nth adults Populahons grew rapidly on all Barbados reefs the reef with fastest recovery retulning to 57 4 % of ~t s pre-mortality density by December 1985 Reefs \nth the hlghest density at the start of the study recovered most rapidly This may suggest that larvae settle preferentially on reefs wlth higher adult densltles, and/or, that luvenile mortality is lower on reefs wlth higher adult densities Populahons of D anMarum in Domlnica and St Lucia decreased dunng the study Moreover, recruitment strength to each island was posibvely correlated w~t h adult denslty on that Island This may suggest that Island populations are dlscrete breeding units Alternatively, the correlation of recruitment strength with island populahon denslty may reflect settlement preference by regionally dispersed larvae for areas of high adult density

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The Community Structure of Coral Reef Fishes

Cited by 174 publications

References 18 publications

Different dispersal abilities allow reef fish to coexist

Different dispersal abilities allow reef fish to coexist

Chemical adaptations in the Octocorallia: evolutionary considerations

Recruitment and population recovery of Diadema antillarum (Echinodermata; Echinoidea) in Barbados

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