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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 60(12)

Assemblages of reef fish settling on artificial substrates: effect of ambient habitat over two temporal scales

C. Mellin A B C and D. Ponton A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A IRD, UR 128, BP A5, 98848 Nouméa cedex, New Caledonia.

B Research Institute for Climate Change and Sustainability, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: camille.mellin@adelaide.edu.au

Marine and Freshwater Research 60(12) 1285-1297 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF08319
Submitted: 23 November 2008  Accepted: 18 May 2009   Published: 17 December 2009

Abstract

Artificial habitats provide a unique opportunity to investigate how habitat characteristics structure juvenile fish assemblages after settlement. We quantified the differences between assemblages of juvenile fish on artificial substrates moored in macroalgal beds, seagrass beds or coral patches over two temporal scales that corresponded to a short (48 h) and a longer (>2 weeks) immersion time, respectively. The highest abundances were obtained from artificial habitats moored in seagrass beds, whatever the immersion time was. Total abundances of juveniles increased 3-fold between a short and a long immersion, suggesting a net accumulation of individuals with time. Moreover, significant differences in juvenile fish assemblage structure were observed between habitats and between immersion times. Artificial habitats may reflect species-specific habitat preferences at settlement at a meso-scale; however, caution must be paid to the effects of ambient habitat and post-settlement processes on juvenile fish assemblages observed on artificial habitats.

Additional keywords: artificial habitat, juvenile, post-settlement, settlement.


Acknowledgements

This project was funded by grants from the IRD, the Ministère de l’Outre-mer and from the Program d’Évaluation des Ressources Marines de la Zone Économique Exclusive de Nouvelle-Calédonie (ZoNéCo). The authors thank the different captains of the NO Coris and Aldric: M. Clarque, N. Colombani and S. Tereua. The authors are very grateful to Gérard Mou-Tham for his invaluable underwater assistance and to Sigrid Lehuta for retrieving and sorting out fish aboard despite seasickness. The authors also thank the two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on the manuscript. A special permit for collecting samples in marine reserves was provided by the Province Sud de Nouvelle-Calédonie. All methods employed in this study, including the handling of the fish, comply with the current laws and regulations in New Caledonia.


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Families are arranged according to Nelson (2006)
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