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The trophic importance of algal turfs for coral reef fishes: the crustacean link

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Abstract

On coral reefs, the epilithic algal matrix (EAM) is widely recognised as an important resource for herbivorous and detritivorous fishes. In comparison, little is known of the interaction between benthic carnivores and the EAM, despite the abundance of Crustacea within the EAM. The trophic importance of the EAM to fishes was investigated in Pioneer Bay, Orpheus Island, Great Barrier Reef. Fish densities were quantified using visual and clove oil censuses, and gut content analyses conducted on abundant fish species. Crustaceans were found to be an important dietary category, contributing between 49.5 and 100 % of the gut contents, with harpacticoid copepods being the dominant component. Of the benthic carnivores, the goby Eviota zebrina was found to consume the most harpacticoids with a mean of 249 copepods m−2 day−1. This represents approximately 0.1 % of the available harpacticoid population in the EAM. In a striking comparison, herbivorous parrotfishes were estimated to consume over 12,000 harpacticoids m−2 day−1, over 27 times more than all benthic carnivores surveyed, representing approximately 5.3 % of the available harpacticoid copepod population each day. The high consumption of harpacticoid copepods by benthic carnivores and parrotfishes indicates that harpacticoids form an important trophic link between the EAM and higher trophic levels on coral reefs.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to thank S. Leahy, J. Welsh and staff of Orpheus Island Research Station for their support in the field; Y. Bosiger and J. Welsh for their valuable assistance processing samples; and five anonymous reviewers for constructive comments. This work was supported by the Australian Research Council (D.R.B.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia

    M. J. Kramer, O. Bellwood & D. R. Bellwood

  2. Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia

    M. J. Kramer & D. R. Bellwood

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  1. M. J. Kramer
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  2. O. Bellwood
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  3. D. R. Bellwood
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Correspondence to M. J. Kramer.

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Kramer, M.J., Bellwood, O. & Bellwood, D.R. The trophic importance of algal turfs for coral reef fishes: the crustacean link. Coral Reefs 32, 575–583 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-013-1009-1

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