Factors influencing spatial distribution of fish communities on a fringing reef at Mauritius, S.W. Indian Ocean |
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Authors: | Mehdi Adjeroud Yves Letourneur Michel Porcher Bernard Salvat |
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Institution: | (1) Centre de Biologie et d'Ecologie Tropicale et Méditerranéenne, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, URA CNRS 1453, Université de Perpignan, 66860 Perpignan Cedex, France;(2) Centre de Recherches Insulaires et Observatoire de l'Environnement, B.P. 1013, Moorea, Polynésie française;(3) Centre ORSTOM, B.P. A5, 98848 Nouméa Cedex, Nouvelle-Calédonie;(4) CAREX Environnement, Avenue de l'Armée d'Afrique, 13100 Aix-en-Provence, France |
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Abstract: | This paper analyses the spatial patterns of fish communities on a narrow fringing reef of Mauritius and identifies some controlling factors. Canonical Correspondence Analysis revealed that the location in the reef ecosystem, the living coral coverage, and the proximity to a dredged area were the major factors controlling the distribution and abundance of fish species. Two distinct communities were observed across the fringing reef, representing a land-ocean gradient. The low diversity of fish species, and also of invertebrates such as corals, molluscs, and echinoderms is probably a consequence of the narrowness of the fringing reef and of anthropogenic impacts, notably the high pollution by nutrients. |
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Keywords: | coral reefs environmental factors canonical correspondence analysis |
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