Assembly rules of coral reef fish communities along the depth gradient.
Curr Biol
; 33(8): 1421-1430.e4, 2023 04 24.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36917975
ABSTRACT
Coral reefs are home to some of the most studied ecological assemblages on the planet. However, differences in large-scale assembly rules have never been studied using empirical quantitative data stratified along the depth gradient of reefs. Consequently, little is known about the small- and regional-scale effects of depth on coral reef assemblages. Using a large dataset of underwater surveys, we observed that the influence of classic biogeographic drivers on the species richness of coral reef fishes changes significantly with depth, shaping distinct assemblages governed by different rules in mesophotic coral ecosystems. We show that a general pattern of decreased taxonomic and functional richness of reef fish assemblages with depth results from convergent filtering of species composition and trophic strategies on deeper reefs across ocean basins and that at smaller scales deep-reef communities are less influenced by regional factors than shallower reefs.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Antozoos
/
Arrecifes de Coral
Límite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Año:
2023
Tipo del documento:
Article