scholarly journals Introduced fish assemblages in a mosaic of urban ponds: evidence for species-area and diversity-dominance patterns

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 116-121
Author(s):  
Corrado Battisti ◽  
Maria Paola Di Santo ◽  
Luca Luiselli ◽  
Giovanni Amori ◽  
Giuseppe M. Carpaneto
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Lower Number ◽  
Introduced Fish ◽  
Pond Management ◽  
Total N ◽  
Urban Ponds ◽  
Species Area ◽  
Species Area Relationship ◽  
Z Value

We studied species-area and diversity-dominance patterns in fish communities of a mosaic of urban ponds (Rome, Italy). We detected 10 fish species (all introduced) in 40 isolated ponds (12.9% of the total; n = 311). The log-transformed species-area relationship (logS = 0.04 logA + 0.16) was significant. Assuming the lack of mechanisms of natural immigration between totally isolated ponds, the number of fish species in this mosaic of ponds may depend exclusively on progressive extinctions and on random and arbitrary events of introduction (acting as human-mediated immigration), these latter explaining the apparently low taxon-related isolation indicated by a low z value (= 0.04). We observed a significantly lower number of species in the smallest ponds and a further threshold under 1 ha in size: these values could represent an interesting threshold for pond management. The diversity-dominance approach evidenced pond size effect acting as a factor of stress on these assemblages.

Reconciliation Ecology and the Future of Species Diversity

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael L. Rosenzweig
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Theory ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Personal Communication ◽  
Reconciliation Ecology ◽  
Alexander Von Humboldt ◽  
Power Equation ◽  
New Strategy ◽  
Species Area ◽  
Species Area Relationship ◽  
Z Value

Alexander von Humboldt (1807) provided the first hint of one of ecology’s most pervasive rules: larger areas contain more species than do small ones. Many ecologists see that rule—the species–area relationship—as one of ecology’s very few general laws (e.g., Lawton 1999, Rosenzweig and Ziv 1999). In the past two centuries, ecologists have learned a lot about species–area relationships. I will explore that knowledge and show that we can already use it in the struggle to minimize extinction losses. It teaches us what proportion of diversity is truly threatened and how to prevent most losses by applying a new strategy of conservation biology. Olaf Arrhenius (1921) and Frank Preston (1960) formalized the species–area pattern by fitting it with a power equation: . . . S = Caz (1) . . . where S is the number of species, A is the area, and C and z are constants. For convenience, ecologists generally employ the logarithmic form of this equation: . . . log S = c + z log A (2) . . . where c = log C. (Note that I do not use the jargon term “species richness.” To understand why, see Rosenzweig et al. 2003.) The species–area power equation, or SPAR, can be fitted to an immense amount of data (Rosenzweig 1995). Ecologists are not sure why a power equation fits islands or continents. But we do have a successful mathematical theory for areas within a province. Brian McGill (personal communication) has deduced the species–area curve within provinces from four assumptions: • The geographical range of each species is independently located with respect to all others. • Species vary in abundance with respect to each other. • Species have a minimum abundance. • Each species’ abundance varies significantly across its own range, being relatively scarce more often than relatively common. (“Relatively” means with respect to its own average abundance.) Data support all four assumptions. From them, McGill shows that there is a species–area curve and that it approximates a power equation whose z-value ranges between 0.05 and 0.25 with a mean of about 0.15.

Questioning Israel's Great Biodiversity—Relative to Whom? A Comment on Roll et al., 2009

2011 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 183-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoni Gavish
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Linear Regression ◽  
Unit Area ◽  
Biodiversity Hotspot ◽  
Biodiversity Hotspots ◽  
Species Area ◽  
C Value ◽  
Species Area Relationship ◽  
Z Value ◽  
Global Biodiversity

Each evolutionary-independent province has its own mainland species area relationship (SPAR). When using the power law SPAR (S = cAz), separate mainland SPARs are parallel in a log-log space (similar z value), yet they differ in species density per unit area (c value). This implies that there are two main SPAR-based strategies to identify biodiversity hotspots. The first treats all mainland SPARs of all provinces as if they form one global SPAR. This is the strategy employed by Roll et al. (2009) when questioning Israel's high biodiversity. They concluded that Israel is not a global biodiversity hotspot. Their results may arise from the fact that Israel's province, the Palaearctic, is relatively poor. Therefore, countries from richer provinces, whose mainland SPAR lies above the Palaearctic SPAR, are identified as global hotspots. The second strategy is to construct different mainland SPARs for each province and identify the provincial hotspots. In this manuscript I ask whether Israel's biodiversity is high relative to other countries within its province. For six different taxa, I analyzed data for Palaearctic countries. For each taxon, I conducted a linear regression of species richness against the country's area, both log transformed. The studentized residuals were used to explore Israel's rank relative to all other Palaearctic countries. I found that Israel lies above the 95th percentile for reptiles and mammals and above the 90th percentile for birds. Therefore, within the Palaearctic province, Israel is indeed a biodiversity hotspot.

Human impacts on the species?area relationship in reef fish assemblages

2007 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 760-772 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek P. Tittensor ◽  
Fiorenza Micheli ◽  
Magnus Nyström ◽  
Boris Worm
Keyword(s):  
Reef Fish ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Human Impacts ◽  
Species Area ◽  
Species Area Relationship

Experimental Examination of the Potential for Three Introduced Fish Species to Prey on Tadpoles of the Endangered Booroolong Frog, Litoria booroolongensis

2011 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Hunter ◽  
Michael J. Smith ◽  
Michael P. Scroggie ◽  
Dean Gilligan
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Introduced Fish ◽  
Experimental Examination

scholarly journals The species–area relationship and evolution

2006 ◽  
Vol 241 (3) ◽  
pp. 590-600 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Lawson ◽  
Henrik Jeldtoft Jensen
Keyword(s):  
Species Area ◽  
Species Area Relationship

scholarly journals Regional and Seasonal Differences in Species Composition and Trophic Groups for Tidepool Fishes of a Western Pacific Island – Taiwan

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin K. C. Wen ◽  
Li-Shu Chen ◽  
Kwang-Tsao Shao
Keyword(s):  
Species Composition ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Coastal Development ◽  
Species Number ◽  
Pacific Region ◽  
Trophic Groups ◽  
Species Numbers ◽  
Intertidal Fish ◽  
Intertidal Fishes

Spatial and temporal variations in the species composition of assemblages are common in many marine organisms, including fishes. Variations in the fish species composition of subtidal coral reefs have been well documented, however much less is known about such differences for intertidal fish assemblages. This is surprising, given that intertidal fishes are more vulnerable to terrestrial human disturbances. It is critical to evaluate the ecology and biology of intertidal fishes before they are severely impacted by coastal development, especially in developing countries such as those in the tropical western Pacific region where coastal development is rapidly increasing. In this study, we investigated the species composition, abundance, biomass and species number (richness) for intertidal fish assemblages in subtropical (northern) and tropical (southern) Taiwan across four seasons by collecting fishes from tidepools using clove oil. We also examined the gut contents of collected fishes to identify their trophic functional groups in order to investigate regional and seasonal variations for different trophic groups. We found significant differences in the species composition of tidepool fish assemblages between subtropical and tropical Taiwan. Bathygobius fuscus, Abudefduf vaigiensis and Istiblennius dussumieri were dominant species in subtropical Taiwan, whereas Bathygobius coalitus, Abudefduf septemfasciatus and Istiblennius lineatus were dominant in tropical Taiwan. Other species such as Bathygobius cocosensis, Abudefduf sordidus and Istiblennius edentulus were common in both regions. For trophic groups, omnivores and detritivores had or showed trends towards higher species numbers and abundances in the subtropical region, whereas herbivores, planktivores and general carnivores had or showed trends towards higher species numbers and biomass in the tropical region. Overall, many intertidal fish species and trophic groups showed differences in abundance, biomass and species number between subtropical and tropical Taiwan. Further studies on large scale geographical gradients in trophic groups and species compositions in the Indo-west Pacific region are encouraged to assist with ecosystem monitoring and assessment. Keywords: Intertidal fishes, spatio-temporal pattern, feeding guild, diet

Performance of a pool-and-weir fish pass for small bottom-dwelling freshwater fish species in a regulated lowland river

2007 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 423-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evelien Maerten ◽  
Marcel Eens ◽  
Guy Knaepkens
Keyword(s):  
Freshwater Fish ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Regulated River ◽  
Lowland River ◽  
Stone Loach ◽  
Spined Loach ◽  
Freshwater Fish Species ◽  
Cottus Gobio ◽  
Fish Pass

AbstractAlthough small benthic freshwater fish species are an important biological component of fish assemblages and free instream movement is indispensable for their survival, they are often neglected in fish pass performance studies. In this study, a capture-mark-recapture approach was used to assess whether small bottom-dwelling species, including gudgeon (Gobio gobio), stone loach (Barbatula barbatula), spined loach (Cobitis taenia) and bullhead (Cottus gobio), were able to cross a pool-and-weir fish pass in a regulated lowland river. Some tagged individuals of stone loach (18%), gudgeon (7%) and spined loach (2%) managed to successfully ascend the fish pass under study, despite the fact that water velocity levels in the different overflows of the facility (between 0.55-1.22 m/s) exceeded the critical swimming speed of all three species. Although this suggests that a pool-and-weir fish pass is a able to facilitate upstream movement of some small benthic species in a regulated river, more detailed research incorporating advanced tagging and retrieving techniques is necessary.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document