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Imprint of monsoonal patterns on the fish assemblage in coastal waters of south‐east India: a case study
Author(s) -
Biswas S.,
Hussain K. Jahir,
Das N. P. I.,
Russell B. C.,
Satpathy K. K.,
Mishra S. S.
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.12461
Subject(s) - species richness , canonical correspondence analysis , demersal fish , biology , pelagic zone , ecology , monsoon , zooplankton , sciaenidae , salinity , species evenness , species diversity , coastal fish , sardinella , fishery , oceanography , coral reef fish , fishing , reef , fish <actinopterygii> , sardine , geology
The composition, species richness and diversity of a coastal fish assemblage from the Kalpakkam coast of south‐east India are described along with temporal distribution patterns related to seasonal fluctuations in dissolved oxygen, salinity, pH , chlorophyll‐ a , phytoplankton and zooplankton species richness and density. A total of 244 fish species belonging to 21 orders, 87 families and 163 genera were recorded. The fish assemblage was dominated by reef‐associated species, followed by demersal species. The majority of the species (63%) are widely distributed in the western Indo‐Pacific as well as in the central Indo‐Pacific. Jaccard's coefficient analysis showed three distinct seasonal patterns of fish occurrence: pre‐monsoon ( PrM ), monsoon (M) and post‐monsoon ( PoM ). The maximum number of species was during the PrM period, followed by the PoM and M periods. Species occurrence analysis showed Sardinella longiceps to be dominant during PrM and M periods, Leiognathus dussumieri during the M period and Secutor insidiator and Secutor ruconius during the M and PoM periods. Canonical correspondence analysis indicated that salinity and rainfall were the two most influential environmental factors strongly correlated with temporal variation in the fish assemblage. The physico‐chemical conditions, in combination with factors such as greater food availability and shelter, might control the seasonal local distribution of the ichthyofauna in these Indian coastal waters.