Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage

The distribution, abundance and composition of marine fish assemblages are influenced by changes in behaviour and movement associated with the diel cycle. The majority of studies exploring day-night differences have demonstrated that there is a greater abundance and diversity of fishes during diurna...

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Main Authors: Myers, E., Harvey, Euan, Saunders, Ben, Travers, M.
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2016
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/46089
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author Myers, E.
Harvey, Euan
Saunders, Ben
Travers, M.
author_facet Myers, E.
Harvey, Euan
Saunders, Ben
Travers, M.
author_sort Myers, E.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description The distribution, abundance and composition of marine fish assemblages are influenced by changes in behaviour and movement associated with the diel cycle. The majority of studies exploring day-night differences have demonstrated that there is a greater abundance and diversity of fishes during diurnal compared with nocturnal hours, and that fish assemblage composition varies with time of day or night. We investigated fine-scale (hourly) diel cycles in the composition and relative abundance of temperate reef fishes using unbaited remote underwater video systems. We observed short crepuscular changeover periods with the hours around dawn and dusk sharing many species, some of which are nocturnal and others diurnal. Diurnal surveys recorded a greater number of individuals (16,990) and species (70) than nocturnal surveys (1053 individuals and 19 species). There was a clear difference between the diurnal assemblage, which was characterized by benthic invertivores, and the nocturnal assemblage composition, which contained zooplanktivores and generalist feeders. Within the diurnal period the hourly temporal variation was relatively homogenous, indicating that standardization of diurnal sampling to a particular time of day may not be necessary.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-460892017-09-13T14:30:05Z Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage Myers, E. Harvey, Euan Saunders, Ben Travers, M. The distribution, abundance and composition of marine fish assemblages are influenced by changes in behaviour and movement associated with the diel cycle. The majority of studies exploring day-night differences have demonstrated that there is a greater abundance and diversity of fishes during diurnal compared with nocturnal hours, and that fish assemblage composition varies with time of day or night. We investigated fine-scale (hourly) diel cycles in the composition and relative abundance of temperate reef fishes using unbaited remote underwater video systems. We observed short crepuscular changeover periods with the hours around dawn and dusk sharing many species, some of which are nocturnal and others diurnal. Diurnal surveys recorded a greater number of individuals (16,990) and species (70) than nocturnal surveys (1053 individuals and 19 species). There was a clear difference between the diurnal assemblage, which was characterized by benthic invertivores, and the nocturnal assemblage composition, which contained zooplanktivores and generalist feeders. Within the diurnal period the hourly temporal variation was relatively homogenous, indicating that standardization of diurnal sampling to a particular time of day may not be necessary. 2016 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/46089 10.1111/maec.12336 restricted
spellingShingle Myers, E.
Harvey, Euan
Saunders, Ben
Travers, M.
Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
title Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
title_full Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
title_fullStr Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
title_full_unstemmed Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
title_short Fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
title_sort fine-scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/46089