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Habitat‐related differences in the abundance of parasites from a coral reef fish: an indication of the movement patterns of Hemigymnus melapterus
Author(s) -
Grutter A. S.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of fish biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1095-8649
pISSN - 0022-1112
DOI - 10.1111/j.1095-8649.1998.tb00108.x
Subject(s) - biology , reef , coral reef fish , heron , abundance (ecology) , coral reef , habitat , ecology , fishery , lutjanidae , fish <actinopterygii> , coral
The prevalence and number of an undescribed Benedenia sp. on Hemigymnus melapterus were significantly greater on fish from the reef flat than from the slope at Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef. In contrast, the abundance of gnathiid isopods on the fish did not differ significantly between habitats. As monogeneans do not leave their hosts, the differences in parasite abundance between the habitats suggest that H. melapterus does not move between the reef flat and reef slope, habitats separated by only a few hundreds of metres. Benedenia may thus be a useful biological tag for following the small‐scale movement patterns of coral reef fish.