Publications:
Brokovich et al. 2007


scientific article | Environ Biol Fish

A deep nursery for juveniles of the zebra angelfish Genicanthus caudovittatus

Brokovich E, Einbinder S, Kark S, Shashar N, Kiflawi M


Abstract

Juveniles of many coral reef fish species are thought to either follow the same bathymetric distribution patterns as the adults, or to occupy shallower waters. However, our knowledge base suffers a dearth of data from the deep reefs (>40 m). In a recent survey of the deep reefs of the northern Gulf of Aqaba (<65 m), we examined the bathymetric distribution of 26 diurnal zooplanktivorous species. In sharp contrast to the general trend known from the literature and from this research, the abundance of juvenile zebra angelfish, Genicanthus caudovittatus, peaked at deeper waters (60–65 m) compared with the adults (30 m). This suggests that the deeper reefs may serve as nursery grounds for the zebra angelfish. Peak juvenile abundance coincided with relatively low predator abundances. This raises the question, which factors constrain the bathymetric distribution of the remaining species. Our findings stress the potential importance of deep coral reef research for understanding the ecological patterns and processes that govern reef community structure.

Research sites
Keywords
Meta-data
Depth range
5- 65 m

Mesophotic “mentions”
7 x (total of 1732 words)

Classification
* Presents original data
* Focused on 'mesophotic' depth range
* Focused on 'mesophotic coral ecosystem'

Fields
Ecology
Connectivity
Community structure

Focusgroups
Fishes

Locations
Israel - Red Sea

Platforms
SCUBA (open-circuit or unspecified)

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