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In situ observation of settlement behaviour in larvae of coral reef fishes at night
Author(s) -
Irisson J.O.,
Lecchini D.
Publication year - 2008
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.1095-8649.2008.01868.x
Subject(s) - biology , reef , fishery , coral , larva , coral reef , habitat , coral reef fish , water column , settlement (finance) , oceanography , ecology , fish <actinopterygii> , geology , world wide web , computer science , payment
The swimming behaviour of 534 coral reef fish larvae from 27 species was explored at Moorea Island (French Polynesia) while they searched for a suitable settlement habitat, on the first night of their lagoon life. Most larvae swam actively (74%) and avoided the bottom (77%). A significant relationship was highlighted between the vertical position of larvae in the water column and the distance they travelled from lagoon entrance to settlement habitat: larvae swimming close to the surface settled farther away on the reef than bottom‐dwelling larvae.