Rocky intertidal fish assemblage of the Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya (Western Indian Ocean)

The tropical rocky intertidal is a poorly studied ecosystem of great ecological and commercial importance, warranting consideration when implementing coastal management strategies. Icthyofaunal diversity was studied at low tide in intertidal pools in the Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya (Western I...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental biology of fishes Vol. 98; no. 7; pp. 1777 - 1785
Main Authors: Sindorf, Victoria, Cowburn, Benjamin, Sluka, Robert D.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.07.2015
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects:
Animal Systematics/Taxonomy/Biogeography
Biodiversity
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Blenniidae
Coastal zone management
Conservation
Coral reefs
ecosystems
Environment
Fish
Fish populations
fisheries
Freshwater & Marine Ecology
Gobiidae
habitat conservation
Habitats
Indian Ocean
Intertidal fish
juveniles
Kenya
Labridae
Life Sciences
Marine ecosystems
National parks
Nature Conservation
Pomacentridae
species diversity
Species richness
trade
Zoology
Kenya
ISW, Indian Ocean
ISW, Kenya, Coast, Malindi, Watamu Marine Natl. Park
Indian Ocean
Connectivity
Tidepool
Biodiversity
Kenya
Species richness
Conservation
ISSN:0378-1909, 1573-5133
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Summary:The tropical rocky intertidal is a poorly studied ecosystem of great ecological and commercial importance, warranting consideration when implementing coastal management strategies. Icthyofaunal diversity was studied at low tide in intertidal pools in the Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya (Western Indian Ocean). A total of 235 individuals in 15 families (34 species) were observed in 78 sampled quadrats. Gobiidae was the most prevalent family, comprising 25.5 % of individuals (five species), followed by Blenniidae with 18.3 % of individuals (five species), Pomacentridae with 15.7 % of individuals (ten species), and Labridae with 14 % of individuals (seven species). A Chao2 asymptotic richness estimate gave an expected asymptotic richness value of 96.36 (s.d. = 6.26), but is likely an underestimate of actual species richness due to limitations of visual census techniques. Half of species observed (52.7 %) were only observed as juveniles, indicating that these habitats may function as nurseries for reef-associated and deeper water fish. Other species were resident in this zone, with ten species being found in no other habitat in the surrounding area. This study suggests that the rocky intertidal contributes greatly to adjacent subtidal reef fish populations, which may support continuing local fisheries commerce through spillover of valuable species into the fishable waters. Conservation of this habitat may be of more importance than was previously considered due to its recent discovery as a possible nursery ground for offshore coral reef fish and the presence of species not found in other habitats in the area.
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ISSN:0378-1909
1573-5133
DOI:10.1007/s10641-015-0397-1