Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Fish assemblage structure in an estuary of the Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot (southern Brazil)

  • Full Paper
  • Published:
Ichthyological Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We described the fish assemblage in the estuary of the Guaraguaçu River (one of the largest tributaries of the Paranaguá Bay Estuary, located within Brazil’s Atlantic Forest Biosphere Reserve) from June 2005 to May 2006, and assessed the seasonal and spatial effects of abiotic environmental attributes on the fish assemblage structure. Despite some oscillations in salinity, the upper and lower estuaries had year-round persistent oligohaline and polyhaline conditions, respectively. Despite high species richness (55 species), the Guaraguaçu River Estuary fish community contains a few dominant taxa; 11% of the richness accounts for >60% of its density and biomass. The most abundant species (in terms of both biomass and density) was Atherinella brasiliensis. Species whose densities were most strongly associated with the upper estuary were Centropomus parallelus, Ctenogobius schufeldti, Eucinostomus melanopterus, Platanichthys platana, Trinectes paulistanus, and Eugerres brasilianus. Those whose densities were most strongly associated with the lower estuary were A. brasiliensis, Sphoeroides greeleyi, Eucinostomus argenteus, Sphoeroides testudineus, Diapterus rhombeus, and Harengula clupeola. Throughout the year, canonical correspondence analysis identified: (1) the pattern of horizontal stratification of salinity along the river as being the most important variable for explaining most of the fish fauna structure; and (2) a strong relationship between the fish fauna and the salinity gradient along the estuary. Analysis of similarity further confirmed that each estuarine zone supports a year-round persistent and relatively homogeneous fish species assemblage. Total mean density and biomass remained constant over time in each estuarine habitat, but density shifted in the most abundant species, which appears related to recruitment patterns. Such species and abundance persistence likely occurs because seasonal rainfall-induced changes in river discharge are not sufficient to significantly shift runoff and salinity and thus fish assemblage structure (species composition, density and biomass) along the estuary. Such a lack of seasonal fish fauna movement as a response to changes in river flow contrasts with other estuarine systems around the world.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Akin S, Buhan E, Winemiller KO, Yilmaz H (2005) Fish assemblage structure of Koycegiz Lagoon estuary, Turkey: spatial and temporal distribution patterns in relation to environmental variation. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 64:671–684

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Allan JD (2004) Landscapes and riverscapes: the influence of land use on stream ecosystems. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 3:257–284

    Google Scholar 

  • Barletta M, Barletta-Bergan A, Saint-Paul U, Hubold G (2003) Seasonal changes in density, biomass, and diversity of estuarine fishes in tidal mangrove creeks of the lower Caeté Estuary (northern Brazilian coast, east Amazon). Mar Ecol Prog Ser 256:217–228

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barletta M, Barletta-Bergan A, Saint-Paul U, Hubold G (2005) The role of salinity in structuring the fish assemblages in a tropical estuary. J Fish Biol 66:45–72

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barletta M, Amaral CS, Corrêa MFM, Guebert F, Dantas DV, Lorenzi L, Saint-Paul U (2008) Factors affecting seasonal variations in demersal fish assemblages at an ecocline in a tropical–subtropical estuary. J Fish Biol 73:1314–1336

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bate GC, Whitfield AK, Adams JB, Huizinga P, Wooldridge TH (2002) The importance of the river–estuary interface (REI) zone in estuaries. Water SA 28:271

    Google Scholar 

  • Brandini FP, Thamm CAC (1994) Variações diárias e sazonais do fitoplâncton e parâmetros ambientais na Baía de Paranaguá. Nerítica 8:55–72

    Google Scholar 

  • Bulger AJ, Hayden BP, Monaco ME, Nelson DM, McCormick-Ray GM (1993) Biologically based estuarine salinity zones derived from a multivariate analysis. Estuaries 16:311–322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caires RA, Pichler HA, Spach HL, Ignácio JM (2007) Opsanus brasiliensis Rotundo, Spinelli & Zavalla-Camin, 2005 (Teleostei: Batrachoidiformes: Batrachoididae), a junior synonym of Opsanus beta (Goode & Bean, 1880), with notes on its occurrence in the Brazilian coast. Biota Neotrop 7:135–139

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castellanos DL, Rozas LP (2001) Nekton use of submerged aquatic vegetation, marsh, and shallow unvegetated bottom in the Atchafalaya River Delta, a Louisiana tidal freshwater ecosystem. Estuaries 24:184–197

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves PTC, Corrêa MFM (1998) Composição ictiofaunística da área de manguezal da Baía de Guaratuba, Paraná, Brasil. Rev Bras Zool 15:195–202

    Google Scholar 

  • Chaves PTC, Vendel AL (2001) Nota complementar sobre a composição ictiofaunística da Baía de Guaratuba, Paraná, Brasil. Rev Bras Zool 18:349–352

    Google Scholar 

  • Clarke KR, Gorley RN (2006) PRIMER v6: user manual/tutorial. PRIMER-E, Plymouth

  • Clarke KR, Warwick RM (2001) Change in marine communities. An approach to statistical analysis and interpretation, 2nd edn. PRIMER-E, Plymouth

  • Contente RF, Stefanoni MF, Spach HL (2010) Feeding ecology of the Brazilian silverside Atherinella brasiliensis (Atherinopsidae) in a sub-tropical estuarine ecosystem. J Mar Biol Assoc UK. doi:10.1017/S0025315410001116

  • Diegues AC (1995) The Mata Atlantica Biosphere Reserve: an overview (Brazil). South-South Cooperation Programme on Environmentally Sound Socio-Economic Development in the Humid Tropics. UNESCO, Paris

  • Falcão MG, Sarpédonti V, Spach HL, Otero MEB, Queiroz GMN, Santos C (2006) A ictiofauna em planícies de maré das Baías das Laranjeiras e de Paranaguá, Paraná, Brasil. Rev Bras Zoociênc 8:125–138

    Google Scholar 

  • Felix FC, Spach HL, Hackradt CW, Moro PS, Rocha DC (2006) Abundância sazonal e a composição da assembléia de peixes em duas praias estuarinas da Baía de Paranaguá, Paraná. Rev Bras Zoociênc 8:35–47

    Google Scholar 

  • Garcia AM, Vieira JP, Winemiller KO (2001) Dynamics of the shallow-water fish assemblage of the Patos Lagoon estuary (Brazil) during cold and warm ENSO episodes. J Fish Biol 59:1218–1238

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenwood MFD, Hill AS (2003) Temporal, spatial and tidal influences on benthic and demersal fish abundance in the Forth estuary. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 58:211–225

    Google Scholar 

  • Jaureguizar AJ, Menni R, Bremec C, Mianzan H, Lasta C (2003) Fish assemblage and environmental patterns in the Río de la Plata estuary. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 56:921–933

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jaureguizar AJ, Menni R, Guerrero R, Mianzan H, Lasta C (2004) Environmental factors structuring fish communities of the Río de la Plata estuary. Fish Res 66:195–211

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kupschus S, Tremain D (2001) Associations between fish assemblages and environmental factors in nearshore habitats of a subtropical estuary. J Fish Biol 58:1383–1403

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lana PC, Marone EL, Lopes RM, Machado EC (2001) The subtropical estuarine complex of Paranaguá Bay, Brazil. In: Seeliger U, Lacerda LD, Kjerfve BJ (eds) Coastal marine ecosystems of Latin America. Springer, Berlin, pp 131–145

    Google Scholar 

  • Maciel NAL (2001) Composição, abundância e distribuição espaço-temporal da ictiofauna do complexo estuarino-lagunar de Iguape-Cananéia, São Paulo, Brasil (Ph.D. thesis). Institute of Oceanography, University of São Paulo, São Paulo

  • Marchand J (1993) The influence of seasonal salinity and turbidity maximum variations on the nursery functions of the Loire Estuary (France). Neth J Aquatic Ecol 27:427–436

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marone E, Lopes RM, Machado EC et al (2005) Land–ocean fluxes in the Paranaguá Bay estuarine system, Southern Brazil. Braz J Oceanogr 53:169–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martinetto P, Iribarnea O, Palomo G (2005) Effect of fish predation on intertidal benthic fauna is modified by crab bioturbation. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 318:71–84

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendoza E, Castillo-Rivera M, Zárate-Hernández R, Ortiz-Burgos S (2009) Seasonal variations in the diversity, abundance, and composition of species in an estuarine fish community in the Tropical Eastern Pacific, Mexico. Ichthyol Res 56:330–339

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Noernberg MA, Lautert LFC, Araújo AD, Marone E, Angelotti R, Netto JPB, Krug LA (2004) Remote sensing and GIS integration for modelling the Paranaguá estuarine complex––Brazil. J Coast Res 39:1627–1631

    Google Scholar 

  • Oliveira-Neto JF, Spach HL, Schwarz-Junior R, Pichler HA (2008) Diel variation in fish assemblages in tidal creeks in southern Brazil. Braz J Biol 68:45–49

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paperno R, Brodie RB (2004) Effects of environmental variables upon the spatial and temporal structure of a fish community in a small, freshwater tributary of the Indian River Lagoon, Florida. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 61:229–241

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pessanha ALM, Araújo FG, Azevedo MCC, Gomes ID (2003) Diel and seasonal changes in the distribution of fish on a southeast Brazil sandy beach. Mar Biol 143:1047–1055

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rocha AJS, Gomes V, Ngan PV, Passos MJACR, Furia RR (2005) Metabolic demand and growth of juveniles of Centropomus parallelus as function of salinity. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 316:157–165

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Santos C, Schwarz R, Oliveira Neto JF, Spach HL (2002) A Ictiofauna em duas planícies de maré do setor euhalino da baía de Paranaguá, Paraná. Bol Inst Pesca 28:49–60

    Google Scholar 

  • Scharf FS, Manderson JP, Fabrizio MC, Pessuti JP, Rosendale JE, Chant RJ, Bejda AJ (2004) Seasonal and interannual patterns of distribution and diet of Bluefish within a Middle Atlantic Bight Estuary in relation to abiotic and biotic factors. Estuaries 27:426–436

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sheaves M, Johnston R, Molony B, Shepard G (2007) The effect of impoundments on the structure and function of fish fauna in a highly regulated dry tropics estuary. Estuar Coast 30:507–517

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sosa-Lopez A, Mouillot D, Ramos-Miranda J, Flores-Hernandez D, Chi TD (2007) Fish species richness decreases with salinity in tropical coastal lagoons. J Biogeogr 34:52–61

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spach HL, Santos C, Godefroid RS (2003) Padrões temporais de peixes na gamboa do Sucuriu, Baia de Paranaguá, Brasil. Rev Bras Zool 20:591–600

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spach HL, Godefroid RS, Santos C, Schwarz R, Queiroz GML (2004) Temporal variation in fish assemblage composition on a tidal flat. Braz J Oceanogr 52:47–58

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spach HL, Felix FC, Hackradt CW, Laufer DC, Moro OS, Cattani AP (2006) Utilização de ambientes rasos por peixes na baía de Antonina, Paraná. Biociências 14:125–135

    Google Scholar 

  • Spach HL, Santos C, Pichler HA, Ignácio JM, Stoiv SB, Bernardo C (2007) Padrões estruturais da assembléia de peixes em duas áreas do Canal da Cotinga, Baía de Paranaguá, Paraná, Brasil. Bioikos 21:57–67

    Google Scholar 

  • ter Braak CJF, Verdonschot PFM (1995) Canonical correspondence analysis and related multivariate methods in aquatic ecology. Aquat Sci 57:255–289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tyler AV, Gabriel WL, Overholtz WJ (1982) Adaptive management based on structure of fish assemblages of northern continental shelves. In: Mercer MC (eds) Multispecies approaches to fisheries management advice (Canadian Special Publication of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 59). Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Ottawa, pp 146–156

  • Valesini FJ, Potter IC, Platell ME, Hyndes GA (1997) Ichthyofaunas of a temperate estuary and adjacent marine embayment: implications regarding choice of nursery area and influence of environmental changes. Mar Biol 128:317–328

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vendel AL, Spach HL, Lopes SG, Santos C (2002) Structure and dynamics of fish assemblages in a tidal creek environment. Braz Arch Biol Technol 45:365–373

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vendel AL, Lopes SG, Santos C, Spach HL (2003) Fish assemblages in a tidal flat. Braz Arch Biol Technol 46:233–242

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vitule JRS, Umbria SC, Aranha JMR (2006) Introduction of the African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) into Southern Brazil. Biol Invations 8:677–681

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield AK (2005) Fishes and freshwater in southern African estuaries—a review. Aquat Living Resour 18:275–289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield AK, Harrison TD (2003) River flow and fish abundance in a South African estuary. J Fish Biol 62:1467–1472

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zar J (1996) Biostatistical analysis, 3rd edn. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River

Download references

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the CEM Fish Biology Laboratory staff for help with both the laboratory and field work. We are also grateful to Instituto Ambiental do Paraná for the research license and to CNPq (National Council of Technological and Scientific Development) for financial support through a master grant to RFC and MFS and through a productivity scholarship to HLS. Finally, we are grateful to two anonymous reviewers for providing useful comments on the manuscript. This study complies with currents laws in Brazil.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Riguel Feltrin Contente

    Present address: Oceanographic Institute (IO), University of São Paulo (USP), 191 Praça do Oceanográfico, 05508-120, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

  2. Marina Freitas Stefanoni

    Present address: PIRITUBA/PERUS Supervision of Health Surveillance, Municipal Health Secretariat of São Paulo City, 290 Cristo Rei Avenue, 02920-130, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Marine Studies (CEM), Federal University of Paraná (UFPR), Beira-mar Avenue, 83255-000, Pontal do Paraná, Paraná, Brazil

    Riguel Feltrin Contente, Marina Freitas Stefanoni & Henry Louis Spach

Authors
  1. Riguel Feltrin Contente
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Marina Freitas Stefanoni
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Henry Louis Spach
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Riguel Feltrin Contente.

About this article

Cite this article

Contente, R.F., Stefanoni, M.F. & Spach, H.L. Fish assemblage structure in an estuary of the Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot (southern Brazil). Ichthyol Res 58, 38–50 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-010-0192-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-010-0192-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation