Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Copepod community structure and abundance in a tropical mangrove estuary, with comparisons to coastal waters

  • COPEPODA: BIOLOGY AND ECOLOGY
  • Published:
Hydrobiologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Zooplankton, sampled at five stations from the upper Sangga estuary (7 km upstream) in Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve (MMFR), Malaysia, to 16 km offshore, comprised more than 47% copepod. Copepod abundance was highest at nearshore waters (20,311 ind m−3), but decreased toward both upstream (15,572 ind m−3) and offshore waters (12,330 ind m−3). Copepod abundance was also higher during the wetter NE monsoon period as compared to the drier SW monsoon period, but vice versa for copepod species diversity. Redundancy analysis (RDA) shows that copepod community structure in the upper estuary, nearshore and offshore waters differed, being influenced by spatial and seasonal variations in environmental conditions. The copepods could generally be grouped into estuarine species (dominantly Acartia spinicauda Mori, Acartia sp1, Oithona aruensis Früchtl, and Oithona dissimilis Lindberg), stenohaline species (Acartia erythraea Giesbrecht, Acrocalanus gibber Giesbrecht, Paracalanus aculateus Giesbrecht, and Corycaeus andrewsi Farran) and euryhaline species (Parvocalanus crassirostris Dahl, Oithona simplex Farran, and Bestiolina similis (Sewell)). Shifts in copepod community structure due to monsoonal effects on water parameters occurred at the lower estuary. Copepod peak abundance in mangrove waters could be associated with the peak chlorophyll a concentration prior to it. Evidence of copepod consumption by many species of young fish and shrimp larvae in the MMFR estuary implies the considerable impact of phytoplankton and microphytobenthos on mangrove trophodynamics.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Blaber, S. J. M., 2000. Tropical Estuarine Fishes, Ecology, Exploitation and Conservation. Blackwell Science, London.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Blaber, S. J. M., 2007. Mangroves and fishes: issues of diversity, dependence, and dogma. Bulletin of Marine Science 80: 457.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bouillon, S., P. C. Chandra, N. Sreenivas & F. Dehairs, 2000. Sources of suspended matter and selective feeding by zooplankton in an estuarine mangrove ecosystem, as traced by stable isotopes. Marine Ecology Progress Series 208: 79–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bouillon, S., F. Dahdouh-Guebas, A. V. V. S. Rao, N. Koedam & F. Dehairs, 2003. Sources of organic carbon in mangrove sediments: variability and possible ecological implications. Hydrobiologia 495: 33–39.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Boxshall, G. A. & S. H. Halsey, 2004. An Introduction to Copepod Diversity. The Ray Society, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cervetto, G., R. Gaudy & M. Pagano, 1999. Influence of salinity on the distribution of Acartia tonsa (Copepoda, Calanoida). Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 239: 33–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chew, L. L., V. C. Chong & Y. Hanamura, 2007. How zooplankton are important to juvenile fish nutrition in mangrove ecosystems. In Nakamura, K. (ed.), JIRCAS Working Report No. 56 on Sustainable Production System of Aquatic Animals in Brackish Mangrove Areas: 7–18.

  • Chong, V. C., 2005. Fifteen years of fisheries research in Matang mangrove: what have we learnt? In Mohamad Ismail, S., A. Muda, R. Ujang, K. Ali Budin, K. L. Lim, S. Rosli, J. M. Som & A. Latiff (eds), Sustainable Management of Matang Mangroves: 100 Years and Beyond, Forest Biodiversity Series. Forestry Department Peninsular Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur: 411–429.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chong, V. C., 2007. Mangroves-fisheries linkages-the Malaysian perspective. Bulletin of Marine Science 80: 755.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chong, B. J. & T. E. Chua, 1975. A preliminary study of the distribution of the cyclopoid copepods of the family Oithonidae in the Malaysian waters. In Anon. (ed.), Proceedings of the Pacific Science Association of Marine Science Symposium, Hong Kong: 32–36.

  • Chong, V. C. & A. Sasekumar, 1981. Food and feeding habits of the white prawn Penaeus merguiensis. Marine Ecology Progress Series 5: 185–191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chong, V. C., A. Sasekumar, C. B. Low & B. S. H. Muhammad Ali, 1999. The physico-chemical environment of the Matang and Dinding mangroves (Malaysia). In Katsuhiro, K. & P. Z. Choo (eds), Proceedings of the 4th Seminar on Productivity and Sustainable Utilization of Brackish Water Mangrove Ecosystem, Fisheries Research Institute, Penang, Malaysia: 115–136.

  • Chong, V. C., C. B. Low & T. Ichikawa, 2001. Contribution of mangrove detritus to juvenile prawn nutrition: a dual stable isotope study in a Malaysian mangrove forest. Marine Biology 138: 77–86.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chua, T. E. & B. J. Chong, 1975. Plankton distribution in the Straits of Malacca and its adjacent waters. In Anon. (ed.), Proceedings of the Pacific Science Association of Marine Science Symposium, Hong Kong: 17–22.

  • DeNiro, M. J. & S. Epstein, 1978. Influence of diet on the distribution of carbon isotopes in animals. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 42: 495–506.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gaudy, R., G. Cervetto & M. Pagano, 2000. Comparison of the metabolism of Acartia clausi and A. tonsa: influence of temperature and salinity. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 247: 51–65.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Grindley, J. R., 1984. The zooplankton of mangrove estuaries. In Por, F. D. & I. Dor (eds), Hydrobiology of the Mangal. Dr. W. Junk Publishers, The Hague: 79–88.

    Google Scholar 

  • Itoh, H., 2006. Parasitic and commensal copepods occurring as planktonic organisms with special reference to Saphirella-like copepods. Bulletin of Plankton Society of Japan 53: 53–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Itoh, H. & S. Nishida, 2007. Life history of the copepod Hemicyclops gomsoensis (Poecilostomatoida, Clausidiidae) associated with decapod burrows in the Tama-River estuary, central Japan. Plankton and Benthos Research 2: 134–146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johan, I., B. A. G. Idris, A. Ismail & O. Hishamuddin, 2002. Distribution of planktonic calanoid copepods in the Straits of Malacca. In Yusoff, F. M., M. Shariff, H. M. Ibrahim, S. G. Tan & S. Y. Tai (eds), Tropical Marine Environment: Charting Strategies for the Millennium. MASDEC-UPM, Serdang, Malaysia: 393–404.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krumme, U. & T. H. Liang, 2004. Tidal-induced changes in a copepod-dominated zooplankton community in a macrotidal mangrove channel in Northern Brazil. Zoological Studies 43: 404–414.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laegdsgaard, P. & C. Johnson, 2001. Why do juvenile fish utilise mangrove habitats? Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 257: 229–253.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lawson, T. J. & G. D. Grice, 1973. The developmental stages of Paracalanus crassirostris Dahl, 1894 (Copepoda, Calanoida). Crustaceana 24: 43–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, S. Y., 2005. Exchange of organic matter and nutrients between mangroves and estuaries: myths methodological issue and missing links. International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences 31: 163–175.

    Google Scholar 

  • Loneragan, N. R., S. E. Bunn & D. M. Kellaway, 1997. Are mangroves and seagrasses sources of organic carbon for penaeid prawns in a tropical Australian estuary? A multiple stable-isotope study. Marine Biology 130: 289–300.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lugo, A. E. & S. C. Snedaker, 1974. The ecology of mangrove. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 5: 39–64.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Madhupratap, M., 1987. Status and strategy of zooplankton of tropical Indian estuaries: a review. Bulletin of Plankton Society of Japan 34: 65–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKinnon, A. & D. Klumpp, 1998. Mangrove zooplankton of North Queensland, Australia. Hydrobiologia 362: 127–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meziane, T. & M. Tsuchiya, 2000. Fatty acids as tracers of organic matter in the sediment and food web of a mangrove/intertidal flat ecosystem, Okinawa, Japan. Marine Ecology Progress Series 200: 49–57.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Meziane, T. & M. Tsuchiya, 2002. Organic matter in a subtropical mangrove-estuary subjected to wastewater discharge: origin and utilisation by two macrozoobenthic species. Journal of Sea Research 47: 1–11.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Newell, R. I. E., N. Marshall, A. Sasekumar & V. C. Chong, 1995. Relative importance of benthic microalgae, phytoplankton and mangroves as sources of nutrition for penaeid prawns and other coastal invertebrates from Malaysia. Marine Biology 123: 595–606.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Odum, W. E. & E. J. Heald, 1975. The detritus-based food web of an estuarine mangrove community. In Cronin, L. E. (ed.), Estuarine Research. Academic Press Inc, New York: 265–286.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oka, S., 2000. Composition and distribution of zooplankton in the tropical brackish waters in Matang, Perak, Malaysia. JIRCAS International Workshop on Brackish Water Mangrove Ecosystems, Productivity and Sustainable Utilization: 83–85.

  • Ooi, A. L., L. L. Chew, V. C. Chong & Y. Ogawa, 2005. Diel abundance of zooplankton particularly fish larvae in the Sangga Kecil estuary, Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve. In Mohamad Ismail, S., A. Muda, R. Ujang, K. Ali Budin, K. L. Lim, S. Rosli, J. M. Som & A. Latiff (eds), Sustainable Management of Matang Mangroves: 100 Years and Beyond, Forest Biodiversity Series. Forestry Department Peninsular Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur: 443–451.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ooi, A. L., V. C. Chong, Y. Hanamura & Y. Konishi, 2007. Occurrence and recruitment of fish larvae in Matang mangrove estuary, Malaysia. In Nakamura, K. (ed.), JIRCAS Working Report No. 56 on Sustainable Production System of Aquatic Animals in Brackish Mangrove Areas: 1–6.

  • Osore, M. K. W., 1992. A note on the zooplankton distribution and diversity in a tropical mangrove creek system, Gazi, Kenya. Hydrobiologia 247: 119–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parson, T. R., Y. Maita & C. Lalli, 1984. Manual of chemical and biological methods for sea water analysis. Pergamon Press, Oxford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, B. J. & B. Fry, 1987. Stable isotopes in ecosystem studies. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 18: 293–320.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pielou, E. C., 1969. An Introduction to Mathematical Ecology. Wiley, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rezai, H., F. M. Yusoff, A. Arshad, A. Kawamura, S. Nishida & B. H. R. Othman, 2004. Spatial and temporal distribution of copepods in the Straits of Malacca. Zoological Studies 43: 486–497.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rezai, H., F. M. Yusoff, A. Arshad & B. H. R. Othman, 2005. Spatial and temporal variations in calanoid copepod distribution in the Straits of Malacca. Hydrobiologia 537: 157–167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robertson, A. I. & S. J. M. Blaber, 1992. Plankton, epibenthos and fish communities. In Robertson, A. I. & D. M. Alongi (eds), Coastal and Estuarine Studies 41, Tropical Mangrove Ecosystems. American Geophysical Union, Washington: 173–224.

    Google Scholar 

  • Robertson, A. I. & N. Duke, 1987. Mangroves as nursery sites: comparisons of the abundance and species composition of fish and crustaceans in mangroves and other nearshore habitats in tropical Australia. Marine Biology 96: 193–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robertson, A. I., P. Dixon & P. A. Daniel, 1988. Zooplankton dynamics in mangrove and other nearshore habitats in tropical Australia. Marine Ecology Progress Series 43: 139–150.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodelli, M. R., J. N. Gearing, P. J. Gearing, N. Marshall & A. Sasekumar, 1984. Stable isotope ratio as a tracer of mangrove carbon in Malaysian ecosystems. Oecologia 61: 326–333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sasekumar, A., V. C. Chong, K. H. Lim & H. R. Singh, 1994. The fish community of Matang mangrove waters. In Sudara, S., C. R. Wilkinson, L. M. Chou (eds), Proceeding, Third-Asean-Australian Symposium on Living Coastal Resources, Vol. 2, Research Papers. Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand: 457–464.

  • Schwamborn, R., 1997. Influence of Mangroves on community structure and nutrition of macrozooplankton in Northeast Brazil. Ph.D. thesis. Bremen University, Bremen, Alemanha.

  • Sewell, S. R. B., 1933. Note on a small collection of marine copepods from the Malay states. Bulletin of Raffles Museum 8: 25–31.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shannon, C. E., 1948. A mathematical theory of communication. Bell System Technical Journal 27(379–423): 623–656.

    Google Scholar 

  • Subbaraju, R. C. & K. Krishnamurthy, 1972. Ecological aspects of plankton production. Marine Biology 14: 25–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ter Braak, C. J. F., 1994. Canonical community ordination. Part I: Basic theory and linear methods. Ecoscience 1: 127–140.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ter Braak, C. J. F. & I. C. Prentice, 1988. A theory of gradient analysis. Advances in Ecological Research 18: 93–138.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thong, K. L., A. Sasekumar & N. Marshall, 1993. Nitrogen concentrations in a mangrove creek with a large tidal range, Peninsular Malaysia. Hydrobiologia 254: 125–132.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tranter, D. J. & S. Abraham, 1971. Coexistence of species of Acartiidae (Copepoda) in the Cochin Backwater, a monsoonal estuarine lagoon. Marine Biology 11: 222–241.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trott, L. A. & D. M. Alongi, 1999. Variability in surface water chemistry and phytoplankton biomass in two tropical, tidally dominated mangrove creeks. Marine & Freshwater Research 50: 451–457.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ueda, H., 1987. Temporal and spatial distribution of the two closely related Acartia species A. omorii and A. hudsonica (Copepoda, Calanoida) in a small inlet water of Japan. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 24: 691–700.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yoshida, T., T. Toda, F. M. Yusoff & B. H. R. Othman, 2006. Seasonal variation of zooplankton community in the coastal waters of the Straits of Malacca. Coastal Marine Science 30: 320–327.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank JIRCAS and University of Malaya (UM) for funding this project, and UM for providing research facilities. We express our gratitude to the Fisheries Department, Malaysia for their cooperation, and provision of trawling permit. We are grateful to S. Nishida, B. H. R. Othman, C. Walter, and T. Yoshida for their assistance on copepod species identification. Special thanks to the following persons for field and laboratory assistance: Mr. Lee Chee Heng (boat man), Miss Ooi Ai Lin, Dr. A. Sasekumar, and members of the Mangrove Ecology Group, University of Malaya. This study forms part of a Ph.D. thesis undertaken by the first author.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Li-Lee Chew & V. C. Chong

Authors
  1. Li-Lee Chew
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. V. C. Chong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to V. C. Chong.

Additional information

Guest editors: L. Sanoamuang & J. S. Hwang / Copepoda: Biology and Ecology

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Chew, LL., Chong, V.C. Copepod community structure and abundance in a tropical mangrove estuary, with comparisons to coastal waters. Hydrobiologia 666, 127–143 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0092-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0092-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation