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Growth and temperature relationships for juvenile fish species in seagrass beds: implications of climate change
Author(s) -
Booth D. J.,
Poulos D. E.,
Poole J.,
Feary D. A.
Publication year - 2014
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/jfb.12255
Subject(s) - seagrass , biology , temperate climate , subtropics , juvenile , estuary , ecology , juvenile fish , fishery , habitat
The effect of water temperature on growth responses of three common seagrass fish species that co‐occur as juveniles in the estuaries in Sydney (34° S) but have differing latitudinal ranges was measured: Pelates sexlineatus (subtropical to warm temperate: 27–35° S), Centropogon australis (primarily subtropical to warm temperate: 24–37° S) and Acanthaluteres spilomelanurus (warm to cool temperate: below 32° S). Replicate individuals of each species were acclimated over a 7 day period in one of three temperature treatments (control: 22° C, low: 18° C and high: 26° C) and their somatic growth was assessed within treatments over 10 days. Growth of all three species was affected by water temperature, with the highest growth of both northern species ( P. sexlineatus and C. australis ) at 22 and 26° C, whereas growth of the southern ranging species ( A. spilomelanurus ) was reduced at temperatures higher than 18° C, suggesting that predicted increase in estuarine water temperatures through climate change may change relative performance of seagrass fish assemblages.