Long-term functional changes in an estuarine fish assemblage.
Mar Pollut Bull
; 97(1-2): 125-134, 2015 Aug 15.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-26093816
The functional diversity of the fish assemblages of the Mondego estuary was studied for a discontinuous 30-year period (1988-2012). During this time, hydrological changes occurred due to man-induced alterations and weather extremes. These changes led to alterations in the structure and function of the fish community. Species richness and functional richness decreased over time and the fish community started to explore new micro-habitats and food resources. Before severe hydrological changes, the community was dominated by pelagic, detritivorous and species with wider salinity ranges. After, the community became dominated by demersal, benthic, piscivorous and marine species. During a drought, omnivorous became increasingly important, reflecting greater possibilities of using available feeding resources. We have also found an increase in sub-tropical species throughout the years, which might be related to gradual temperature increases at a global scale. This study also confirmed estuaries as extremely important for restocking several commercial species.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Estuaries
/
Fishes
Limits:
Animals
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
En
Journal:
Mar Pollut Bull
Year:
2015
Document type:
Article
Country of publication:
United kingdom