Abstract
Herbivorous reef fish play an important role in shaping ecosystem processes on coral reefs. Often found in schools, Scarus rivulatus, is an abundant herbivorous species on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, especially on inshore reefs. Recent evidence has highlighted the limited spatial movements of some herbivorous fishes. However, individuals in schools are thought to be much more mobile. The aim of this study, therefore, was to evaluate the spatial range of schooling S. rivulatus to measure the spatial scale over which they exert their functional role. Furthermore, we assess the influence of the schooling behaviour on their feeding rates and thus their ecological impact. The diurnal movements of S. rivulatus were monitored using acoustic transmitters and a passive acoustic array for up to 7 months in Pioneer Bay, Orpheus Island, GBR. In addition, behavioural observations recorded school size-frequency distributions and feeding rates of S. rivulatus inside and outside foraging schools. Despite schooling, all S. rivulatus were site attached. On average, the maximum potential home range of individuals was 24,440 m2 and ranges overlapped extensively in individuals captured from the same school. School size was highly variable, with a mean school size of 5.7 individuals. Schooling had a significant impact on the functional role of individuals, with feeding rates in schools being two times higher for S. rivulatus and over three times higher for other scarid species. Our results suggest that, despite schooling, individual S. rivulatus only rove over a limited area of reef (occupying a linear stretch of reef, measuring only approximately 250 m for individuals and 220 m for entire schools). Each individual may therefore have little impact on the spatial resilience of coral reefs.
References
Afonso P, Fontes J, Holland KN, Santos RS (2008) Social status determines behaviour and habitat usage in a temperate parrotfish: implications for marine reserve design. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 359:215–227
Afonso P, Fontes J, Holland KN, Santos RS (2009) Multi-scale patterns of habitat use in a highly mobile reef fish, the white trevally Pseudocaranx dentex, and their implications for marine reserve design. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 381:273–286
Alevizon WS (1976) Mixed schooling and its possible significance in a tropical western Atlantic parrotfish and surgeonfish. Copeia 1976:796–798
Allen GR, Steene RC, Humann P, Deloach N (2003) Reef fish identification—tropical pacific. New World Publications, Jacksonville, FL
Alwany MA, Thaler E, Stachowitsch M (2009) Parrotfish bioerosion on Egyptian Red Sea reefs. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 371:170–176
Bellwood DR, Hoey AS, Choat JH (2003) Limited functional redundancy in high diversity systems: resilience and ecosystem function on coral. Ecol Lett 6:281–285
Bellwood DR, Hughes TP, Folke C, Nyström M (2004) Confronting the coral reef crisis. Nature 429:827–833
Bellwood DR, Hoey AS, Hughes TP (2011) Human activity selectively impacts the ecosystem roles of parrotfishes on coral reefs. Proc R Soc B. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2011.1906
Bonaldo RM, Bellwood DR (2010) Spatial variation in the effects of grazing on epilithic algal turfs on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Coral Reefs 30:381–390
Bonaldo RM, Krajewski JP, Sazima C, Sazima I (2006) Foraging activity and resource use by three parrotfish species at Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, tropical West Atlantic. Mar Biol 149:423–433
Brown JL (1975) The evolution of behaviour. Norton, New York
Bruggemann HJ, Kuyper MWM, Breeman AM (1994a) Comparative analysis of foraging and habitat use by the sympatric Caribbean parrotfish Scarus vetula and Sparisoma viride. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 112:51–66
Bruggemann HJ, van Oppen MJH, Breeman AM (1994b) Foraging by the stoplight parrotfish Sparisoma viride. I. Food selection in different, socially determined habitats. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 106:41–55
Bruggemann JH, van Rooij MJ, Videler JJ, Breeman AM (1995) Dynamic and limitations of herbivore populations on a Caribbean coral reef. Ph.D. thesis, University of Groningen, pp 153–190
Burkepile DE, Hay ME (2008) Herbivore species richness and feeding complementarity affect community structure and function on a coral reef. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 105:16201–16206
Burkepile DE, Hay ME (2010) Impact of herbivore identity on algal succession and coral growth on a Caribbean reef. PLoS ONE 5:e8963
Cheal AJ, Aaron MacNeil M, Cripps E, Emslie MJ, Jonker M, Schaffelke B, Sweatman HPA (2010) Coral–macroalgal phase shifts or reef resilience: links with diversity and functional roles of herbivorous fishes on the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 29:1005–1015
Cheal A, Emslie M, Miller I, Sweatman H (2012) The distribution of herbivorous fishes on the Great Barrier Reef. Mar Biol ‘in press’
Choat JH, Bellwood DR (1985) Interactions amongst herbivorous fishes on a coral reef: influence of spatial variation. Mar Biol 89:221–234
Clifton KE (1989) Territory sharing by the Caribbean striped parrotfish, Scarus iserti: patterns of resource abundance, group size and behaviour. Anim Behav 37:90–103
Ferreira CEL, Gonçalves JEA (2006) Community structure and diet of roving herbivorous reef fishes in the Abrolhos Archipelago, south-western Atlantic. J Fish Biol 69:1533–1551
Floeter SR, Ferreira CEL, Dominici-Arosemena A, Zalmon IR (2004) Latitudinal gradients in Atlantic reef fish communities: trophic structure and spatial use patterns. J Fish Biol 64:1680–1699
Folke C, Carpenter S, Walker B, Scheffer M, Elmqvist T, Gunderson L, Holling CS (2004) Regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in ecosystem management. Annu Rev Ecol Evol Syst 35:557–581
Foster SA (1985) Group foraging by a coral reef fish: a mechanism for gaining access to defended resources. Anim Behav 33:782–792
Fox RJ, Bellwood DR (2007) Quantifying herbivory across a coral reef depth gradient. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 339:49–59
Fox RJ, Bellwood DR (2011) Unconstrained by the clock? Plasticity of diel activity rhythm in a tropical reef fish, Siganus lineatus (Pisces: Siganidae). Funct Ecol 25:1096–1105
Gardner TA, Cote IM, Gill JA, Grant A, Watkinson AR (2003) Long-term region-wide declines in Caribbean corals. Science 301:958–960
Graham NAJ, Wilson SK, Jennings S, Polunin NVC, Bijoux JP, Robinson J (2006) Dynamic fragility of oceanic coral reef ecosystems. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 103:8425–8429
Hay ME (1981) Herbivory, algal distribution and the maintenance of between habitat diversity on a tropical fringing reef. Am Nat 118:520–540
Heupel MR, Semmens JM, Hobday AJ (2006) Automated acoustic tracking of aquatic animals: scales, design and deployment of listening station arrays. Mar Freshw Res 57:1–13
Heupel MR, Reiss KL, Yeiser BG, Simpfendorfer CA (2008) Effects of biofouling on performance of moored data logging acoustic receivers. Limnol Oceanogr Methods 6:327–335
Hoey AS, Bellwood DR (2008) Cross-shelf variation in the role of parrotfishes on the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 27:37–47
Hoey AS, Bellwood DR (2010) Cross-shelf variation in browsing intensity on the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 29:499–508
Hughes TP, Bellwood DR, Folke C, Steneck RS, Wilson SK (2005) New paradigms for supporting the resilience of marine ecosystems. Trends Ecol Evol 20:380–386
Hughes TP, Rodrigues MJ, Bellwood DR, Ceccarelli D, Hoegh-Guldberg O, McCook L, Moltschaniwskyj N, Pratchett MS, Steneck RS, Willis B (2007) Phase shifts, herbivory, and the resilience of coral reefs to climate change. Curr Biol 17:360–365
Hutchinson N, Rhodes KL (2010) Home range estimates for squaretail coralgrouper, Plectropomus areolatus (Rüppell 1830). Coral Reefs 21:511–519
Itzkowitz M (1977) Social dynamics of mixed-species groups of Jamaican reef fishes. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2:361–384
Kernohan BJ, Gitzen RA, Millspaugh JJ (2001) Analysis of animal space use and movements. In: Millspaugh JJ, Marzluff JM (eds) Radio tracking and animal populations. Academic Press, New York, pp 126–164
Kuwamura T, Sagawa T, Suzuki S (2009) Interspecific variation in spawning time and male mating tactics of the parrotfishes on a fringing coral reef at Iriomote Island, Okinawa. Ichthyol Res 56:354–362
Ledlie MH, Graham NAJ, Bythell JC, Wilson SK, Jennings S, Polunin NVC, Hardcastle J (2007) Phase shifts and the role of herbivory in the resilience of coral reefs. Coral Reefs 26:641–653
Lefèvre CD, Bellwood DR (2010) Seasonality and dynamics in coral reef macroalgae: variation in condition and susceptibility to herbivory. Mar Biol 157:955–965
Lukoschek V, McCormick MI (2000) A review of multi-species foraging associations in fishes and their ecological significance. Proc 9th Int Coral Reef Symp 23–27
Marshell A, Mills J, Rhodes K, McIlwain J (2011) Passive acoustic telemetry reveals highly variable home range and movement patterns among unicornfish within a marine reserve. Coral Reefs 30:631–642
Meyer CG, Holland KN (2005) Movement patterns, home range size and habitat utilization of the bluespine unicornfish, Naso unicornis (Acanthuridae) in a Hawaiian marine reserve. Environ Biol Fish 73:201–210
Mumby PJ (2006) The impact of exploiting grazers (Scaridae) on the dynamics of Caribbean coral reefs. Ecol Appl 16:747–769
Mumby PJ, Wabnitz CCC (2002) Spatial patterns of aggression, territory size, and harem size in five sympatric Caribbean parrotfish species. Environ Biol Fish 63:265–279
Munoz RC, Motta PJ (2000) Interspecific aggression between two parrotfishes (Sparisoma, Scaridae) in the Florida Keys. Copeia 3:674–683
Myers RF (1989) Micronesian reef fishes: a practical guide to the identification of the coral reef fishes of the tropical central and western Pacific. Coral Graphics, Guam
Nash KL, Graham NAJ, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Bellwood DR (2012) Influence of habitat condition and competition on foraging behaviour of parrotfish. Mar Ecol Prog Ser ‘in press’
Nyström M, Folke C (2001) Spatial resilience of coral reefs. Ecosystems 4:406–417
Nyström M, Graham NAJ, Lokrantz J, Norström AV (2008) Capturing the cornerstones of coral reef resilience linking theory to practice. Coral Reefs 27:795–809
Paddack MJ, Cowen RK, Sponaugle S (2006) Grazing pressure of herbivorous coral reef fishes on low coral-cover reefs. Coral Reefs 25:461–472
Quinn GP, Keough MJ (2002) Experimental design and data analysis for biologists. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Randall JE, Allen GR, Steene RC (1997) Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. University of Hawai’i Press, Honolulu, HI
Robertson DR, Sweatman HPA, Fletcher EA, Cleland MG (1976) Schooling as a mechanism for circumventing the territoriality of competitors. Ecology 57:1208–1220
Sazima C, Krajewski JP, Bonaldo RM, Sazima I (2007) Nuclear-follower foraging associations of reef fishes and other animals at an oceanic archipelago. Environ Biol Fish 80:351–361
Scheffer M, Carpenter S, Foley JA, Folke C, Walker BH (2001) Catastrophic shifts in ecosystems. Nature 413:591–596
van Rooij MJ, Kroon FJ, Videler JJ (1996) The social and mating system of the herbivorous reef fish Sparisoma viride: one-male versus multi-male groups. Environ Biol Fish 47:353–378
Vergés A, Vanderklift MA, Doropoulos C, Hyndes GA (2011) Spatial patterns in herbivory on a coral reef are influenced by structural complexity but not by algal traits. PLoS ONE 6:e17115
Welsh JQ, Bellwood DR (2012) Spatial ecology of the steephead parrotfish (Chlorurus microrhinos): an evaluation using acoustic telemetry. Coral Reefs 31:55–65
Welsh JQ, Fox RJ, Webber DM, Bellwood DR (2012) Performance of remote acoustic receivers within a coral reef habitat: implications for array design. Coral Reefs ‘in press’
Wilson SK, Graham NAJ, Pratchett MS, Jones GP, Polunin NVC (2006) Multiple disturbances and the global degradation of coral reefs: are reef fishes at risk or resilient? Global Change Biol 12:2220–2234
Wilson SK, Fisher R, Pratchett MS, Graham NAJ, Dulvy NK, Turner RA, Cakacaka A, Polunin NVC, Rushton SP (2008) Exploitation and habitat degradation as agents of change within coral reef fish communities. Global Change Biol 14:2796–2809
Acknowledgments
We wish to thank: the staff of Orpheus Island Research Station and Vemco for invaluable field support; Y Bosiger, S Brandle, D Duchene, C Goatley, J Hopf, M Kramer, S Leahy and M Walsh for field assistance; Y Bosiger, JH Choat, R Fox, C Goatley, M Kramer, RC Muñoz, C Simpfendorfer, S Swearer and J Tanner for helpful discussions or comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript; M Walsh for significant contributions to data analysis. JCU Animal Ethics Approval # A1321. This work was supported by the Australian Research Council (D. R. B).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Communicated by Biology Editor Dr. Stephen Swearer
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Welsh, J.Q., Bellwood, D.R. How far do schools of roving herbivores rove? A case study using Scarus rivulatus . Coral Reefs 31, 991–1003 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-012-0922-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-012-0922-z