Species associations and day-night variability of trawl-caught fishes from the inshore sponge-coral habitat, South Atlantic bight

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Author

Wenner, Charles A.

Subject

Saltwater fishing; Fishes--Classification

Description

Biomass, species composition, diversity, and community structure of demersal fishes were studied during the spring of 1978 in the sponge-coral habitat of the South Atlantic Bight. These results were compared with sampling at an open-shelf site. Otter trawl catch rates were an order of magnitude higher in the sponge-coral habitat than at the open-shelf site. Density and biomass estimates in the sponge-coral habitat averaged 384 individuals/ha and 31.0 kg/ha, respectively, whereas at the open-shelf site they averaged 57 individuals/ha and 3.2 kg/ha. In sponge-coral habitat samples, 101 species of demersal teleosts were taken. The Sparidae accounted for the greatest number of species (9), as well as 59% of the total number and 48% of the weight of demersal teleosts. Species diversity was highest in night-trawl tows in the sponge-coral habitat. Species associations, described by numerical classification, showed major differences in faunal assemblages between reef and open-shelf sites and between day and night samples.

URI

http://hdl.handle.net/10827/10566

Collections

• Fishery Bulletin

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Date

1983

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Date Accessioned	2013-08-23T12:27:24Z
Date Available	2013-08-23T12:27:24Z
dc.description	Biomass, species composition, diversity, and community structure of demersal fishes were studied during the spring of 1978 in the sponge-coral habitat of the South Atlantic Bight. These results were compared with sampling at an open-shelf site. Otter trawl catch rates were an order of magnitude higher in the sponge-coral habitat than at the open-shelf site. Density and biomass estimates in the sponge-coral habitat averaged 384 individuals/ha and 31.0 kg/ha, respectively, whereas at the open-shelf site they averaged 57 individuals/ha and 3.2 kg/ha. In sponge-coral habitat samples, 101 species of demersal teleosts were taken. The Sparidae accounted for the greatest number of species (9), as well as 59% of the total number and 48% of the weight of demersal teleosts. Species diversity was highest in night-trawl tows in the sponge-coral habitat. Species associations, described by numerical classification, showed major differences in faunal assemblages between reef and open-shelf sites and between day and night samples.
Media Type	Document
Item Language	English
Publisher	South Carolina State Library
Digital Collection	South Carolina State Documents Depository
Rights	Copyright status undetermined. For more information contact, South Carolina State Library, 1500 Senate Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29201.
Type	Text
Digitization Specifications	This South Carolina State Document was either saved from a document available publicly online in PDF format or converted to PDF using Adobe Acrobat X Professional.