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Differences in fish assemblage structure between vegetated and unvegetated microhabitats in relation to food abundance patterns in a mangrove creek

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Abstract

In order to clarify the mechanisms determining fish distribution patterns in a mangrove system on Iriomote Island, in southern Japan, fish assemblage structures were determined by visual observation, along with food abundance and environmental factors, in an area of mangrove roots on the banks, and a bare sand area at the center, within downstream, midstream and upstream portions of a branch creek from the Urauchi River. The fish assemblage structures differed significantly between the area types, with the mangrove-root area supporting a more diverse and abundant fish fauna. A canonical correspondence analysis revealed that the relationships between fish distribution and their food abundance differed among trophic groups. Benthic crustacean or plant feeders were positively associated with their prey i.e. crabs and macroalgae—in other words, these trophic groups were abundant in downstream and/or midstream mangrove-root areas in which their prey were also particularly abundant. However, zooplankton feeders did not show such relationships, their abundance being positively associated with fine sediment particles (characteristic of areas with weak water movement). These results suggested that food availability is a major factor determining the distribution patterns of benthic crustacean feeders and plant feeders, whereas for zooplankton feeders other factors, such as sheltering effects against water current and/or predators, may be more significant.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Ken Sakihara, Akira Mizutani and the Okinawa Regional Research Center, Tokai University, for assistance with the fieldwork. Constructive comments on the manuscript from Graham Hardy and two anonymous reviewers were much appreciated. This study was funded by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (No. 21380121).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8564, Japan

    Kusuto Nanjo

  2. Okinawa Regional Research Center, Tokai University, Uehara, Taketomi, Okinawa, 907-1541, Japan

    Hiroyoshi Kohno

  3. Graduate School of Kuroshio Science, Kochi University, 200 Monobe, Nankoku, Kochi, 783-8502, Japan

    Yohei Nakamura

  4. Research Center for Coastal Lagoon Environments, Shimane University, 1060, Nishikawatsu-cho, Matsue, Shimane, 690-8504, Japan

    Masahiro Horinouchi

  5. Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo, 113-8657, Japan

    Mitsuhiko Sano

Authors
  1. Kusuto Nanjo
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  2. Hiroyoshi Kohno
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  3. Yohei Nakamura
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  4. Masahiro Horinouchi
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  5. Mitsuhiko Sano
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kusuto Nanjo.

Appendix

Appendix

See Table 6.

Table 6 Mean individual number of fish species (except ten dominant species) per transect (20 m2, n = 6) in the mangrove-root area and bare sand area at each station in each season in the first and second years
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Nanjo, K., Kohno, H., Nakamura, Y. et al. Differences in fish assemblage structure between vegetated and unvegetated microhabitats in relation to food abundance patterns in a mangrove creek. Fish Sci 80, 21–41 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-013-0682-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-013-0682-x

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