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Temporal changes in hamlet communities ( Hypoplectrus spp., Serranidae) over 17 years
Author(s) -
Hench K.,
Mcmillan W. O.,
BetancurR R.,
Puebla O.
Publication year - 2017
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.13481
Subject(s) - reef , transect , hamlet (protein complex) , serranidae , biology , ecology , coral reef fish , abundance (ecology) , relative species abundance , turbidity , fishery , fish <actinopterygii> , oceanography , geology , genetics
Transect surveys of hamlet communities ( Hypoplectrus spp., Serranidae) covering 14 000 m 2 across 16 reefs off La Parguera, Puerto Rico, are presented and compared with a previous survey conducted in the year 2000. The hamlet community has noticeably changed over 17 years, with a > 30% increase in relative abundance of the yellowtail hamlet Hypoplectrus chlorurus on the inner reefs at the expense of the other hamlet species. The data also suggest that the density of H. chlorurus has declined and that its distribution has shifted towards shallower depths. Considering that H. chlorurus has been previously identified as one of the few fish showing a positive association with seawater turbidity on the inner reefs of La Parguera and that sedimentation of terrestrial origin has increased over recent decades on these reefs, it is proposed that turbidity may constitute an important but so far overlooked ecological driver of hamlet communities.