Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-fscjk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T08:04:49.699Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Coral reef fish association and behaviour on the fire coral Millepora spp. in north-east Brazil

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 April 2013

Isabela Carolina Silva Leal ,
Pedro Henrique Cipresso Pereira  and
Maria Elisabeth de Araújo
Isabela Carolina Silva Leal*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Oceanografia, CTG, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE) Avenida Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil
Pedro Henrique Cipresso Pereira
Affiliation:
School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University—JCU, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia
Maria Elisabeth de Araújo
Affiliation:
Departamento de Oceanografia, CTG, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE) Avenida Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: I.C.S. Leal, Departamento de Oceanografia, CTG, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Avenida Arquitetura, s/n, Cidade Universitária, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil email: leal.ics@gmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The branching structure of the coral colonies from the genus Millepora provides substrate, shelter, and food resources for several reef organisms, such as fish and invertebrates. The present work analysed the association and behaviour of reef fish on the fire coral Millepora alcicornis and M. brasiliensis from September 2010 to February 2011, on the coastal reefs of Tamandaré, north-east Brazil. A total of 473 reef fish individuals of 27 species were sighted associated with the coral colonies, mainly composed of juveniles (65%). The most frequently observed behaviours were sheltered/stationary and swimming close to the coral; however, individuals were also observed foraging and breeding among Millepora spp. branching colonies. The agonistic behaviour performed by Stegastes fuscus individuals was highlighted in the present study, especially against Chaetodon striatus, Diodon holacanthus and Ophioblennius trinitatis individuals. Millepora spp. hydrocorals are ecologically important for juvenile and adult reef fish belonging to several trophic guilds. The complex structure of the coral colonies provides a wide variety of ecological functions on coral reefs (e.g. shelter, reproduction area, food and even territory). Nevertheless, the abundance of branching fire coral in Brazilian reefs have been declining over the past years; therefore, efforts must be made to protect this key habitat.

Keywords

HydrozoainteractionsPernambucohabitatsubstrate
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 93 , Issue 6 , September 2013 , pp. 1703 - 1711
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2013 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Abdulla, A. (2004) Predator–prey interactions in coral reef fish: the implications of predation risk on the behaviour and growth of prey. PhD thesis. James Cook University, Australia.Google Scholar
Altmann, J. (1974) Observational study of behavior: sampling methods. Behavior 49, 227–265.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Amaral, F.D. (1997) Milleporidae (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa) do litoral brasileiro. Tese de Doutorado. Universidade de São Paulo, Brasil.Google Scholar
Amaral, F.D., Broadhurst, M.K., Cairns, S.D. and Schlenz, E. (2002) Skeletal morphometry of Millepora occurring in Brazil, including a previously undescribed species. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 115, 681–695.Google Scholar
Amaral, F.D., Hudson, M.M., Steiner, A.Q. and Ramos, C.A.C. (2007) Corals and calcified hydroids of the Manuel Luiz Marine State Park (State of Maranhão, Northeast Brazil). Biota Neotropica 7, 00907032007.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amaral, F.D., Steiner, A.Q., Broadhurst, M.K. and Cairns, S.D. (2008) An overview of the shallow-water calcified hydroids from Brazil (Hydrozoa: Cnidaria), including in 117 the description of a new species. Zootaxa 1940, 56–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berumen, M. and Rotjan, R.D. (2010) New records of corallivory in the Red Sea. Coral Reefs 29, 727.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bortone, S.A., Kimmel, J.J. and Bundrick, C.M. (1989) A comparison of three methods for visually assessing reef fish communities: time and area compensated. Northeast Gulf Science 10, 85–96.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boschma, H. (1948) The species problem in Millepora. Zool Verh Leiden 1, 3–115.Google Scholar
Brooks, A.J., Holbrook, S.J. and Schmitt, R.J. (2007) Patterns of microhabitat use by fishes in the patch-forming coral Porites rus. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 14, 245–254.Google Scholar
Bryant, D., Burke, L., Mcmanus, J. and Spalding, M. (1998) Reefs at risk: a map based indicator of threats to the world's coral reef. Washington, DC: World Resources Institute.Google Scholar
Carpenter, K.E., Abrar, M., Aeby, G., Aronson, R.B., Banks, S., Bruckner, A., Chiriboga, A., Cortés, J., Delbeek, J.C. and DeVantier, L. (2008) One-third of reef-building corals face elevated extinction risk from climate change and local impacts. Science 321, 560–563.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ciardelli, A. (1967) The anatomy of feeding mechanism and the food habits of Microspathodon chrysurus (Pisces: Pomacentridae). Bulletin of Marine Science 17, 845–883.Google Scholar
Coni, E.O.C., Ferreira, M.C., Moura, L.M., Meirelles, P.M., Kaufman, L. and Francini-Filho, R.B. (2012) An evaluation of the use of branching fire-corals (Millepora spp.) as refuge by reef fish in the Abrolhos Bank, eastern Brazil. Environmental Biology of Fishes 75, 1–12. 10.1007/s10641-012-0021-6Google Scholar
Depczynski, M. and Bellwood, D.R. (2004) Microhabitat utilization patterns in cryptobenthic reef fish communities. Marine Biology 145, 455–463.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Diamond, J.M. (1978) Niche shifts and the rediscovery of interspecific competition. American Scientist 66, 322–331.Google Scholar
Ebersole, J.P. (1977) Adaptive significance of interspecific territoriality in the reef fish Eupomacentrus leucostictus. Ecology 58, 914–920.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Faunce, C. and Serafy, J.E. (2007) Nearshore habitat use by gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus) and bluestriped grunt (Haemulon sciurus): environmental gradients and ontogenetic shifts. Bulletin of Marine Science 80, 473–495.Google Scholar
Feitosa, J.L.L., Cocentino, A.L.M., Teixeira, S.F. and Ferreira, B.P. (2012) Food resource use by two territorial damselfish (Pomacentridae: Stegastes) on South-Western Atlantic algal-dominated reefs. Journal of Sea Research 70, 42–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, B.P., Maida, M. and Souza, A.E.T. (1995) Levantamento inicial das comunidades de peixes recifais da região de Tamandaré—PE. Boletim Técnico Científico do CEPENE 3, 211–230.Google Scholar
Ferreira, C.E.L., Gonçalves, J.E.A., Coutinho, R. and Peret, A.C. (1998) Herbivory by the Dusky Damselfish Stegastes fuscus (Cuvier, 1830) in a tropical rocky shore: effects on the benthic community. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 229, 241–264.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, B.P., Maida, M. and Cava, F. (2001) Ictiofauna Marinha da APA Costa dos Corais: lista de espécies através de levantamento de pesca e observações subaquáticas. Boletim Técnico Científico do CEPENE 9, 167–180.Google Scholar
Ferreira, B.P. and Maida, M. (2006) Monitoramento dos Recifes de Costa do Brasil. Ministério do Meio Ambiente, Occasional Publications.Google Scholar
Floeter, S.R., Krohling, W., Gasparini, J.L., Fereira, C.E.L. and Zalmon, I.R. (2007) Reef fish community structure on coastal islands of southeastern Brazil: the influence of exposure and benthic cover. Environmental Biology of Fish 78, 147–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garcia, T.M., Matthews-Cascon, H. and Franklin-Junior, W. (2008) Macrofauna associated with branching fire coral Millepora alcicornis (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa). International Journal of Marine Sciences 24, 11–19.Google Scholar
Gibran, F.Z., Santos, F.B., Santos, H.F. and Sabino, J. (2004) Courtship and spawning of the hairy blenny, Labrisomus nuchipinnis (Labrisomidae) in southeastern Brazil. Neotropical Ichthyology 2, 163–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gleason, D.F. (1993) Differential effects of ultraviolet radiation on two color morphs of the Caribbean coral Porites astreoides. Limnology and Oceanography 38, 1452–1463.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenfield, D.W. (2002) Holocentridae. In Carpenter, K.E. (ed.) The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Rome: FAO, pp. 1192–1202.Google Scholar
Guichard, F., Bourget, E. and Robert, J.L. (2001) Scaling the influence of topographic heterogeneity on an intertidal benthic communities: alternate trajectories mediated by hydrodynamics and shading. Marine Ecology Progress Series 217, 27–41.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haley, M.P. and Muller, C.R. (2002) Territorial behavior of beaugregory damselfish (Stegastes leucostictus) in response to egg predators. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 273, 151–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hammer, W.M., Jones, M.S., Carleton, J.H., Hauri, I.R. and Williams, D.Mc.B. (1988) Zooplankton, planktivorous fish, and watercurrents on a windward reef face: Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Bulletin of Marine Science 42, 459–479.Google Scholar
Hata, H. and Kato, M. (2004) Monoculture and mixed-species algal farms on a coral reef are maintained through intensive and extensive management by damselfishes. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 313, 285–296.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hixon, M.A. (2011) 60 years of coral-reef fish ecology: past, present, future. Bulletin of Marine Science 87, 727–765.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hobbs, J.P.A. and Munday, P.L. (2004) Intraspecific competition controls spatial distribution and social organization of the coral-dwelling goby Gobiodon histrio. Marine Ecology Progress Series 278, 253–259.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hobson, E.S. and Chess, J.R. (1978) Trophic relationships among fishes and plankton in the lagoon at Enewetak Atoll, Marshall Islands. Fish Bulletin 76, 133–153.Google Scholar
Holbrook, S.J., Brooks, A.J. and Schmitt, R.J. (2002a) Variation in structural attributes of patch-forming corals and patterns of abundance of associated fishes. Marine and Freshwater Research 53, 1045–1053.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holbrook, S.J., Brooks, A.J. and Schmitt, R.J. (2002b) Predictability of fishes assemblages on coral patch reefs. Marine and Freshwater Research 53, 181–188.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Humann, P. and Deloach, N. (2002) Reef fish identification—Florida, Caribbean, Bahamas. Jacksonville, FL: New World Publications.Google Scholar
Jones, G.P., Santana, L., McCook, L.J. and McCormick, M.I. (2006) Resource use and impact of three herbivorous damselfishes on coral reef communities. Marine Ecology Progress Series 328, 215–224.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnson, M.K., Holbrook, S.J., Schmitt, R.J. and Brooks, A.J. (2011) Fish communities on staghorn coral: effects of habitat characteristics and resident farmerfishes. Environmental Biology of Fishes 91, 429–448.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaufman, L. (1977) The three spot damselfish: effects on benthic biota of Caribbean coral reefs. Proceedings of the Third International Coral Reef Symposium. Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Miami, Miami, FL, pp. 559–564.Google Scholar
Leão, Z.M.A.N. (1994) Coral reefs of southern Bahia. In Hetzel, B. and Castro, C.B. (eds) Corals of Southern Bahia. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Nova Fronteira, pp. 151–160.Google Scholar
Leão, Z.M.A.N. and Dominguez, J.M.L. (2000) Tropical coast of Brazil. Marine Pollution Bulletin 41, 112–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Leão, Z.M.A.N., Kikuchi, R.K.P. and Testa, V. (2003) Corals and coral reefs of Brazil. In Latin American coral reefs. Amsterdam: Elsevier, pp. 9–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewis, J.B. (1989) The ecology of Millepora—a review. Coral Reefs 8, 99–107.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewis, J.B. (2006) Biology and ecology of the hydrocoral Millepora on coral reefs. Advances in Marine Biology 50, 1–55.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mahoney, B.M. (1981) An examination of interspecific territoriality in the dusky damselfish. Bulletin of Marine Science 31, 141–146.Google Scholar
Maida, M. and Ferreira, B.P. (1997) Coral reefs of Brazil: an overview. In Proceedings of the 8th International Coral Reef Symposium. Panama, pp. 1:263–1:274.Google Scholar
Marshall, P.A. and Baird, A.H. (2000) Bleaching of corals on the Great Barrier Reef: Differential susceptibilities among taxa. Coral Reefs 19, 155–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munday, P.L. (2002) Does habitat availability determine the geographical-scale abundance of coral-dwelling fishes? Coral Reefs 21, 105–116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munday, P.L. (2004) Competitive coexistence among coral dwelling fishes: the lottery hypothesis revisited. Ecology 85, 623–628.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munday, P.L., Jones, G.P. and Caley, M.J. (1997) Habitat specialization and the distribution and abundance of coral-dwelling gobies. Marine Ecology Progress Series 152, 227–239.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munday, P.L., Harold, A.S. and Winterbottom, R. (1999) Guide to coraldwelling gobies, genus Gobiodon (Gobiidae) from Papua New Guinea and the Great Barrier Reef. Revue Française d'Aquariologie 26, 49–53.Google Scholar
Nagelkerken, I. and Nagelkerken, W.P. (2004) Loss of coral cover and biodiversity on shallow Acropora and Millepora reefs after 31 years on Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. Bulletin of Marine Science 74, 213–223.Google Scholar
Oliveira, M.D.M., Leão, Z.M.A.N. and Kikuchi, R.K.P. (2008) Cultivo de Millepora alcicornis como uma ferramenta para restauração e manejo dos ecossistemas recifais do Nordeste do Brasil. Revista de Gestão Costeira Integrada 8, 183–201.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patton, W.K. (1994) Distribution and ecology of animals associated with branching corals (Acropora spp.) from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Bulletin of Marine Science 55, 193–211.Google Scholar
Pennings, S.C. (1997) Indirect interactions on coral reefs. In Birkeland, C. (ed.) Life and death of coral reefs. New York: Chapman & Hall, pp. 249–272.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pereira, P.H.C. and Ferreira, B.P. (2012) Agonistic behavior of Haemulon spp. coral reef fishes (Actinopterygii: Hamulidae) in Northeastern Brazil. Cybium, Paris 36, 361–367.Google Scholar
Pereira, P.H.C., Leal, I.C.S., Araújo, M.E. and Souza, A.T. (2012) Feeding association between reef fishes and the fire coral Millepora spp. (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa). Marine Biodiversity Records 5, 1–4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pratchett, M.S. (2007) Dietary selection by coral-feeding butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae) on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 14, 171–176.Google Scholar
Pratchett, M.S., Coker, D.R., Jones, G.P. and Munday, P.L. (2012) Specialization in habitat use by coral reef damselfishes and their susceptibility to habitat loss. Ecology and Evolution 2, 2168–2180.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Precht, W.F., Aroson, R.B., Moody, R.M. and Kaufman, L. (2010) Changing patterns of microhabitat utilization by the threespot damselfish, Stegastes planifrons, on Caribbean reefs. PLoS ONE 5, 10835.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Randall, J.E. (1967) Food habits of reef fishes of the West Indies. Studies in Tropical Oceanography 5, 665–847.Google Scholar
Randall, J.E. (1996) Caribbean reef fishes. 3rd edition. Hong Kong: T.F.H. Publications.Google Scholar
Robertson, D.R., Hoffman, S.G. and Sheldon, J.M. (1981) Availability of space for the territorial Caribbean damselfish Eupomacentrus planifrons. Ecology 62, 1162–1169.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robertson, D.R. (1984) Cohabitation of competing territorial damselfishes on a Caribbean coral reef. Ecology 65, 1124–1135.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rotjan, R.D. and Lewis, S.M. (2008) The impact of coral predators on tropical reefs. Marine Ecology Progress Series 367, 73–91.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sale, P.F. (1977) Maintenance of high diversity in coral reef fish communities. American Naturalist 111, 337–359.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sale, P.F. (2002) Coral reef fishes: dynamics and diversity in a complex ecosystem. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Sazima, I., Gasparini, J.L. and Moura, R.L. (2002) Labrisomus cricota, a new scaled blenny from the coast of Brazil (Perciformes: Labrisomidae). Aqua Journal of Ichthyology and Aquatic Biology 5, 127–132.Google Scholar
Shpigel, M. and Fishelson, L. (1989) Habitat partitioning between species of the genus Cephalopholis (Pisces, Serranidae) across the fringing reef of the Gulf of Aquaba (Red Sea). Marine Ecology Progress Series 58, 17–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shulman, M.J. (1984) Resource limitation and recruitment patterns in a coral reef fish assemblage. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 74, 85–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Svane, I. and Petersen, J.K. (2001) On the problems of epibioses, fouling and artificial reefs: a review. Marine Ecology 22, 169–188.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Souza, A.T., Ilarri, M.I. and Rosa, I.L. (2011) Habitat use, feeding and territorial behavior of a Brazilian endemic damselfish Stegastes rocasensis (Actinopterygii: Pomacentridae). Environmental Biology of Fish 91, 133–144.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Victor, B.C. (1986) Larval settlement and juvenile mortality in a recruitment-limited coral reef fish population. Ecological Monographs 56, 145–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilson, S.K., Graham, N.A.J., Pratchett, M.S., Jones, G.P. and Polunin, N.V.C. (2006) Multiple disturbances and the global degradation of coral reefs: are reef fishes at risk or resilient? Global Change Biology 12, 2220–2234.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilson, S.K., Burgess, S.C., Cheal, A.J., Emslie, M., Fisher, R., Miller, I., Polunin, N.V.C. and Sweatman, H.P.A. (2008) Habitat utilization by coral reef fish: implications for specialists vs. generalists in a changing environment. Journal of Animal Ecology 77, 220–228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar