scholarly journals Underwater Video as a Tool to Quantify Fish Density in Complex Coastal Habitats

Diversity ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 50
Author(s):  
Ronald Baker ◽  
Dakota Bilbrey ◽  
Aaron Bland ◽  
Frank D’Alonzo ◽  
Hannah Ehrmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Restoration ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Sampling Site ◽  
Artificial Reef ◽  
Fish Communities ◽  
Underwater Video ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Coastal Habitats ◽  
Simple Method ◽  
Density Estimates

Habitat loss is a serious issue threatening biodiversity across the planet, including coastal habitats that support important fish populations. Many coastal areas have been extensively modified by the construction of infrastructure such as ports, seawalls, docks, and armored shorelines. In addition, habitat restoration and enhancement projects often include constructed breakwaters or reefs. Such infrastructure may have incidental or intended habitat values for fish, yet their physical complexity makes quantitatively sampling these habitats with traditional gears challenging. We used a fleet of unbaited underwater video cameras to quantify fish communities across a variety of constructed and natural habitats in Perdido and Pensacola Bays in the central northern Gulf of Mexico. Between 2019 and 2021, we collected almost 350 replicate 10 min point census videos from rock jetty, seawall, commercial, public, and private docks, artificial reef, restored oyster reef, seagrass, and shallow sandy habitats. We extracted standard metrics of Frequency of Occurrence and MaxN, as well as more recently developed MeanCount for each taxon observed. Using a simple method to measure the visibility range at each sampling site, we calculated the area of the field of view to convert MeanCount to density estimates. Our data revealed abundant fish assemblages on constructed habitats, dominated by important fisheries species, including grey snapper Lutjanus griseus and sheepshead Archosargus probatocephalus. Our analyses suggest that density estimates may be obtained for larger fisheries species under suitable conditions. Although video is limited in more turbid estuarine areas, where conditions allow, it offers a tool to quantify fish communities in structurally complex habitats inaccessible to other quantitative gears.

scholarly journals Using fish assemblage to identify success criteria for seagrass habitat restoration

Web Ecology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Scapin ◽  
M. Zucchetta ◽  
C. Facca ◽  
A. Sfriso ◽  
P. Franzoi
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Restoration ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Relative Proportion ◽  
Ecological Status ◽  
Fish Fauna ◽  
Seagrass Habitat ◽  
Northern Adriatic Sea ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Northern Adriatic ◽  
Seagrass Meadows

Abstract. A fish-based multimetric index was applied to assess the ecological status of fish fauna in both natural and newly restored seagrass meadows in the Venice lagoon (northern Adriatic Sea, Italy), using natural habitats as reference sites. Fish assemblages were then compared, and community attributes of recreated and natural habitats were evaluated. Ecological status resulted higher in natural meadows, and a multivariate analysis showed that an increase in the relative proportion of seagrass specialists at restored sites could represent an indicator of success of seagrass restoration.

Use of stereo baited remote underwater video systems to estimate the presence and size of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias)

2017 ◽  
Vol 68 (7) ◽  
pp. 1391 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Harasti ◽  
K. A. Lee ◽  
R. Laird ◽  
R. Bradford ◽  
B. Bruce
Keyword(s):  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
New South ◽  
Underwater Video ◽  
Carcharodon Carcharias ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Video Systems ◽  
Near Shore ◽  
Number Of Individuals ◽  
Non Destructive

Stereo baited remote underwater video systems (stereo-BRUVs) are commonly used to assess fish assemblages and, more recently, to record the localised abundance and size of sharks. The present study investigated the occurrence and size of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) in the near-shore environment off Bennett’s Beach, part of a known nursery area for the species in central New South Wales, Australia. Six stereo-BRUV units were deployed approximately fortnightly between August and December 2015 for periods of 5h in depths of 7–14m. Stereo-BRUVs successfully recorded 34 separate sightings of 22 individual white sharks. The highest number of individuals detected during a single day survey was eight. All C. carcharias observed on stereo-BRUVs were juveniles ranging in size from 1.50 to 2.46-m total length (mean±s.e., 1.91±0.05m; n=22). The time to first appearance ranged from 15 to 299min (mean±s.e., 148±15min). This study demonstrates that the use of stereo-BRUVs is a viable, non-destructive method to obtain estimates of the size and presence of white sharks, and may be useful in estimating relative abundance in near-shore environments where white sharks are known to frequent.

scholarly journals Fish densities associated with structural elements of oil and gas platforms in southern California

2019 ◽  
Vol 95 (4) ◽  
pp. 639-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin L Meyer-Gutbrod ◽  
Li Kui ◽  
Mary M Nishimoto ◽  
Milton S Love ◽  
Donna M Schroeder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Southern California ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Fish Habitat ◽  
Artificial Reef ◽  
Offshore Structures ◽  
Structural Elements ◽  
Structural Element ◽  
Young Of The Year

There are thousands of offshore oil and gas platforms worldwide that will eventually become obsolete, and one popular decommissioning alternative is the "rigs to reefs" conversion that designates all or a portion of the underwater infrastructure as an artificial reef, thereby reducing the burden of infrastructure removal. The unique architecture of each platform may influence the size and structure of the associated fish assemblage if different structural elements form distinct habitats for fishes. Using scuba survey data from 11 southern California platforms from 1995 to 2000, we examined fish assemblages associated with structural elements of the structure, including the major horizontal crossbeams outside of the jacket, vertical jacket legs, and horizontal crossbeams that span the jacket interior. Patterns of habitat association were examined among three depth zones: shallow (<16.8 m), midwater (16.8–26 m), and deep (>26 m); and between two life stages: young- of-the-year and non-young-of-the-year. Fish densities tended to be greatest along horizontal beams spanning the jacket interior, relative to either horizontal or vertical beams along the jacket exterior, indicating that the position of the habitat within the overall structure is an important characteristic affecting fish habitat use. Fish densities were also higher in transects centered directly over a vertical or horizontal beam relative to transects that did not contain a structural element. These results contribute to the understanding of fish habitat use on existing artificial reefs, and can inform platform decommissioning decisions as well as the design of new offshore structures intended to increase fish production.

Overlap in fish assemblages observed using pelagic and benthic baited remote underwater video stations

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (6) ◽  
pp. 870 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas M. Clarke ◽  
Sasha K. Whitmarsh ◽  
Peter G. Fairweather ◽  
Charlie Huveneers
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Single Units ◽  
Benthic Fish ◽  
Underwater Video ◽  
Pelagic Species ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Pelagic Fishes ◽  
Pelagic Communities

Baited remote underwater video stations (BRUVS) are increasing in popularity as non-invasive and fishery-independent tools for assessing fish assemblages. Although most BRUVS studies have focused on benthic fish communities, recent studies also use BRUVS to examine the comparatively undersampled pelagic communities. However, the propensities of benthic BRUVS to detect pelagic fishes and, likewise, pelagic BRUVS to detect demersal fishes are unknown. This study simultaneously used benthic and pelagic BRUVS deployed either separately (single) or in combination to determine assemblages of demersal and pelagic species at three contrasting sites within temperate South Australia. Assemblages observed by benthic v. pelagic BRUVS differed significantly at all sites, including one as shallow as 7m deep, but there were no significant differences in assemblages observed between BRUVS of the same position (i.e. pelagic or benthic) when BRUVS were deployed as single units or in combination. This study reveals the limitations of using only benthic or pelagic BRUVS, and highlights the necessity for both BRUVS positions to be used together to ensure that a comprehensive representation of entire fish assemblages throughout the water column can be obtained.

Subtidal assemblages associated with a geotextile reef in south-east Queensland, Australia

2005 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rhys A. Edwards ◽  
Stephen D. A. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Artificial Reef ◽  
Demersal Fish ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Marine Habitats ◽  
Sessile Invertebrates ◽  
Hard Structures ◽  
Asymmetrical Design ◽  
Natural Reefs

In marine habitats, the use of geotextile materials as a ‘soft-engineering’ solution is increasingly being considered as an alternative to hard structures. However, very little is known about biological assemblages that develop on geotextile structures. This study provides the first ecological comparison of subtidal assemblages between Narrowneck Artificial Reef (NAR), a geotextile reef in south-east Queensland, Australia, and three nearby natural reefs. Benthic community structure, fish assemblages and habitat complexity were compared between reef types using an asymmetrical design. Although natural reefs supported distinct biotic assemblages, as a class, these reefs differed significantly from NAR. The artificial reef was dominated by macroalgae and supported fewer benthic categories, whereas the natural reefs were characterised by a diverse range of sessile invertebrates. Benthic and demersal fish assemblages were less diverse on NAR, but pelagic fish assemblages were similar on both reef types. The substratum of NAR was less complex than that of the natural reefs; this physical variable was correlated with some of the differences in benthic communities and benthic and demersal fish assemblages. It is likely that the key determinants of the biotic patterns observed in this study are interactions between the age of NAR and the physical properties of geotextile substratum.

Artificial Reefs in Marseille: From Complex Natural Habitats to Concepts of Efficient Artificial Reef Design

2010 ◽  
pp. 81-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Charbonnel ◽  
F. Carnus ◽  
S. Ruitton ◽  
L. Le Direac’h ◽  
J.-G. Harmelin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Reef ◽  
Artificial Reefs ◽  
Natural Habitats

Corrigendum to: Depth-related composition and structuring of tropical riverine fish assemblages revealed by baited video

2017 ◽  
Vol 68 (10) ◽  
pp. 1976
Author(s):  
Stephen Cousins ◽  
Mark J. Kennard ◽  
Brendan C. Ebner
Keyword(s):  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Water Clarity ◽  
Sampling Effort ◽  
Underwater Video ◽  
Video Footage ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Lutjanus Argentimaculatus ◽  
Riverine Fish

The aim of the present study was to determine whether boat-based deployment of remote underwater video cameras is effective for surveying fish assemblages in the deepest reaches of two large tropical rivers in north-eastern Australia. In addition, we compared fish assemblages recorded on baited versus unbaited cameras, and evaluated the sampling effort (duration of recording) required to estimate fish assemblages using remote underwater videos. We found that fish assemblages differed according to the depth, with statistically significant differences largely attributable to the prevalence of small-bodied species (Ambassis sp., Melanotaenia sp. and Pseudomugil signifer recorded in shallow (0.4–2.0m) and intermediate (2.1–4.9m) depths, and larger-bodied fish species (>10cm TL), such as Lutjanus argentimaculatus, Mesopristes argenteus and Caranx sexfasciatus, in deep water (>5.0m). Estimates of fish assemblage attributes generally stabilised after 60min recording duration, suggesting that interrogation of video footage beyond this duration may not be cost-effective. We conclude that depth is an important consideration when surveying large and deep river fish assemblages and that where water clarity is favourable, underwater video provides one of the means by which an assemblage can be investigated across the entire depth profile.

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