Éditeur(s) : Elsevier Science Bv
Résumé : Coastal and estuarine systems provide nursery grounds for many marine fish species. Their productivity has been correlated with terrigeneous inputs entering the coastal-estuarine benthic food web, thereby favouring the establishment of fish juveniles. Studies in these ecosystems often describe the nursery as a single large habitat without verifying nor considering the presence of contiguous habitats. Our study aimed at identifying different habitats based on macrozoobenthic communities and morpho-sedimentary characteristics and assessing the trophic interactions between fish juveniles and their benthic preys within these habitats. It included 43 sampling sites covering 5 habitats in which we described taxonomically and quantitatively the invertebrates and fish communities with stable isotopes and gut contents. It suggested that the benthic common sole Solea solea displayed feeding plasticity at the population level, separating the juveniles (G0) from the older fish (G1) into different "feeding sub-populations". Size-based feeding plasticity was also observable in the spatial occupancy of that species in the studied bay. The demersal pouting, Trisopterus luscus, equally used the different habitats but displayed low feeding plasticity across and inside each habitat. Stable isotopes proved to be powerful tools to study the spatial distribution of trophic interactions in complex ecosystems like the bay of Vilaine and to define optimal habitats for fish that use the coastal-estuarine ecosystem as nursery grounds.
Journal Of Sea Research (1385-1101) (Elsevier Science Bv), 2013-08 , Vol. 81 , P. 40-48

Droits : 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00151/26226/24327.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.seares.2013.03.013
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00151/26226/

Éditeur(s) : John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Résumé : 1. The development of macroalgae to the detriment of corals is now one of the major threats to coral reefs. Herbivorous fishes are partly responsible for algal regulation on coral reefs and their overexploitation favours the shift from scleractinian coral-dominated systems towards macroalgae-dominated systems. 2. Marine protected areas (MPAs) that have been established worldwide may benefit coral reefs through the maintenance of high densities of herbivorous fishes which regulate algal growth. 3. The paper assesses whether small MPAs in the Caribbean are able to enhance herbivorous fish stock and by controlling macroalgae help to maintain reef ecosystems. A visual census using band-transects was undertaken around Guadeloupe island where marine reserves have been in place since 1979. The effects of MPAs on both benthic communities and herbivorous fishes are examined. 4. Inside MPAs, herbivorous fish biomass was almost twice as high as outside MPAs and macroalgal cover was significantly lower. Fish size class distributions revealed that large individuals occurred mainly inside MPAs and that few male individuals were found outside MPAs. Copyright (C) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Aquatic Conservation-marine And Freshwater Ecosystems (1052-7613) (John Wiley & Sons Ltd), 2010-07 , Vol. 20 , N. 5 , P. 516-524

Droits : 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00011/12214/9551.pdf
DOI:10.1002/aqc.1118
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00011/12214/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
The role of herbivorous fishes in maintaining low macroalgal cover was evaluated on coral reefs on several reef sites from Guadeloupe, either protected or not. Grazing by herbivorous fishes was assessed on different algal facies using fish-bite counts. Algal consumption by fish was estimated as well as algal production. Bite counts revealed that herbivorous fishes feed preferentially on algal turf and avoid brown macroalgae. The algal consumption varied between 0.4 and 2.8 g m days and was higher inside marine protected areas than outside. Comparison with algal production revealed that herbivorous fishes did not succeed in regulating algal growth. The insufficient number of grazers may lead to the dominance of stable assemblages of macroalgae on coral reefs, preventing the recovery of reef into previous coral-dominated ecosystems.
ISSN: 1438-387X

hal-00533405
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00533405
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00533405/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00533405/file/PEER_stage2_10.1007%252Fs10152-009-0177-4.pdf
DOI : 10.1007/s10152-009-0177-4