Habitat complexity, including factors like rugosity, coral cover, and hole numbers/sizes, can influence reef fish abundance in several ways:
1) Increased habitat complexity can relax competition for resources by providing more space and structures.
2) It plays a role in regulating foraging patterns by providing physical structures for both juvenile and adult fish.
3) Higher complexity can increase predation risk but also gives prey more places to hide, affecting the balance between these factors.
Habitat complexity, including factors like rugosity, coral cover, and hole numbers/sizes, can influence reef fish abundance in several ways:
1) Increased habitat complexity can relax competition for resources by providing more space and structures.
2) It plays a role in regulating foraging patterns by providing physical structures for both juvenile and adult fish.
3) Higher complexity can increase predation risk but also gives prey more places to hide, affecting the balance between these factors.
Habitat complexity, including factors like rugosity, coral cover, and hole numbers/sizes, can influence reef fish abundance in several ways:
1) Increased habitat complexity can relax competition for resources by providing more space and structures.
2) It plays a role in regulating foraging patterns by providing physical structures for both juvenile and adult fish.
3) Higher complexity can increase predation risk but also gives prey more places to hide, affecting the balance between these factors.
Habitat complexity, including factors like rugosity, coral cover, and hole numbers/sizes, can influence reef fish abundance in several ways:
1) Increased habitat complexity can relax competition for resources by providing more space and structures.
2) It plays a role in regulating foraging patterns by providing physical structures for both juvenile and adult fish.
3) Higher complexity can increase predation risk but also gives prey more places to hide, affecting the balance between these factors.
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Influence of habitat complexity
on reef fish abundance
McCoy and Bell (1991): “habitat structure” is defined through its: 1. complexity = absolute abundance of the habitat structure 2. heterogeneity = number of varying habitat structural components 3. scale used to measure 1 & 2 Bartholomew, A., Diaz, R. and Cicchetti, G..2000.New dimensionless indices of structural habitat complexity: predicted and actual effects on predator's foraging success. Marine Ecology Progress Series 206, 45-48 - differential reproduction and mortality Fish - colonisation and density extinction -involuntary transport and voluntary movements
Kramer, D., Rangeley, R. and Chapman, L..Habitat selection: patterns of spatial distribution from behavioural decisions.pp 37-80 Habitat Selection
Foraging profitability Predation risk
Optimal habitat selection
Kramer, D., Rangeley, R. and Chapman, L..Habitat selection: patterns of spatial distribution from behavioural decisions.pp 37-80 Habitat complexity
Rugosity Coral cover Coral height Hole numbers and sizes
Gratwicke and Speight,2005; Friedlander and Parrish, 1998
What can habitat complexity do?
Relaxes competition
Role in regulation of Habitat foraging patterns complexity
Provides physical structure for juvenile and adult animals (Bell and Galzin, 1984;Friedlander and Parish,1998; Dominici and Wolff, 2005; Johnson, 2007; Bartholomew, Diaz and Cichetti,2000) abundance
Competition Habitat Predation Complexity abundance Friedlander, A. and Parrish, J..1998.Habitat characteristics affecting fish assemblages on a Hawaiian coral reef.Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 224, 1-30 Ct/At = measures the amount of cover within a habitat that prey species can hide behind
Sp/Pr = measures the extent to which predator manueverability is reduced within a habitat
Bartholomew, A., Diaz, R. and Cicchetti, G..2000.New dimensionless indices of structural habitat complexity: predicted and actual effects on predator's foraging success. Marine Ecology Progress Series 206, 45-48 Mangrove-seagrass-coral triangle http://www.oneocean.org/about_crmp/coastal.html
Dorenbosch, 2008 - scale has profound effects on resultant patterns, with fine scale measure often giving better prediction of one group of organisms and landscape measures predictions of others
-some fishes respond to habitat features at fine spatial
scales while others respond to features at landscape scales
