Fish cleaning interactions on a remote island in the Tropical Eastern Pacific

Quimbayo, Juan P.; Dias, Murilo S.; Schlickmann, O. R. C.; Mendes, Thiago C.

doi:10.1007/s12526-016-0493-2

Cited by 26 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…This unexpected result could be related to the high influence of fishing and other human disturbances on large islands (Cinner et al 2016, Maire et al 2016). On the other hand, this result could be due to the fact that oceanic islands act as oases in the open sea, attracting large predators and pelagic schooling fish in their search for food, cleaning services and/or refuge, with widely roaming species aggregating along with resident reef species (Gove et al 2016, Quimbayo et al 2017a. Some studies support the high proportion of large-bodied species (better colonizers) in large and isolated islands (Luiz et al 2012).…”

Section: Factormentioning

confidence: 99%

Determinants of reef fish assemblages in tropical Oceanic islands

et al. 2018

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Diversity patterns are determined by biogeographic, energetic, and anthropogenic factors, yet few studies have combined them into a large‐scale framework in order to decouple and compare their relative effects on fish faunas. Using an empirical dataset derived from 1527 underwater visual censuses (UVC) at 18 oceanic islands (five different marine provinces), we determined the relative influence of such factors on reef fish species richness, functional dispersion, density and biomass estimated from each UVC unit. Species richness presented low variation but was high at large island sites. High functional dispersion, density, and biomass were found at islands with large local species pool and distance from nearest reef. Primary productivity positively affected fish richness, density and biomass confirming that more productive areas support larger populations, and higher biomass and richness on oceanic islands. Islands densely populated by humans had lower fish species richness and biomass reflecting anthropogenic effects. Species richness, functional dispersion, and biomass were positively related to distance from the mainland. Overall, species richness and fish density were mainly influenced by biogeographical and energetic factors, whereas functional dispersion and biomass were strongly influenced by anthropogenic factors. Our results extend previous hypotheses for different assemblage metrics estimated from empirical data and confirm the negative impact of humans on fish assemblages, highlighting the need for conservation of oceanic islands.

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Section: Factormentioning

confidence: 99%

Determinants of reef fish assemblages in tropical Oceanic islands

et al. 2018

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“…Recent studies have shown that cleaning interactions can be influenced by specific traits in cleaners, clients or both (Floeter et al ., ; Quimbayo et al ., ). For instance, cleaners that have an aposematic colouration and specific behaviours, such as zig‐zag swimming, attract more clients that are searching for a quick service (Côté, ; Cheney et al ., ; Lettieri et al ., ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Cleaning interactions by gobies on a tropical eastern Pacific coral reef

Quimbayo

Zapata

2018

Journal of Fish Biology

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The present study describes the cleaning interactions among species of cleaner gobies Tigrigobius spp. and Elacatinus puncticulatus (family Gobiidae) and the client fish species they clean in a coral reef of Gorgona Island, Colombia. In 419 cleaning events, we observed 27 species acting as clients of Tigrigobius spp., whereas only nine were clients of E. puncticulatus. Paranthias colonus and Cephalopholis panamensis were the species most commonly cleaned by Tigrigobius spp., while Ophioblennius steindachneri and Stegastes acalpulcoensis were the clients most commonly cleaned by E. puncticulatus. The abundance (but not the body size) of clients was an important variable predicting the cleaning frequency observed for clients of Tigrigobius spp., but this was not the case for clients of E. puncticulatus. Additionally, Tigrigobius spp. preferred cleaning planktivores, sessile invertebrate feeders and territorial herbivores (Ivlev's index >0·15), whereas E. puncticulatus did not exhibit any preference. We observed two major peaks of cleaning activity for Tigrigobius spp., one in the early morning and another one in the late afternoon. These results suggest that Tigrigobius spp. is a specialized cleaner goby, whereas E. puncticulatus is a facultative cleaner that cleans sporadically.

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“…We hypothesize that networks are nested in the presence of cleaners (either fish or shrimp) that are specialized and efficient, such as those that are dedicated, small‐bodied, coloured, form larger groups and dwell at the seafloor. These traits (or a combination thereof) could improve the cleaning service and the detection of clients by cleaners or vice versa (see also Cheney et al, ; Quimbayo, Dias, et al, ; Vaughan et al, ). Alternatively, we hypothesize that modular cleaning networks can emerge if there is resource‐use partitioning amongst morphologically and/or behaviourally distinct cleaners.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Such varying degrees of specialization in cleaning, as well as the distribution of cleaning interactions, can provide insights into the fundamental and realized foraging niche of cleaner species within marine communities (Floeter, Vázquez, & Grutter, 2007;Sazima et al, 2010). Cleaning mutualisms are influenced by multiple characteristics of cleaners and clients, such as morphology, size, behaviour, trophic group and abundance (Baliga & Mehta, 2015;Cheney, Grutter, Blomberg, & Marshall, 2009;Floeter et al, 2007;Quimbayo, Dias, Schlickmann, & Mendes, 2017). Nevertheless, the contribution of such traits to shaping the mutualistic network at the community level remains poorly understood.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The global structure of marine cleaning mutualistic networks

Quimbayo

Cantor

Dias

et al. 2018

Global Ecol Biogeogr

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Aim We studied the underlying biotic and abiotic drivers of network patterns in marine cleaning mutualisms (species feeding upon ectoparasites and injured tissues of others) at large spatial scales. Location Eleven marine biogeographical provinces. Time period 1971–2018. Major taxa studied Reef fish and shrimps. Methods We combined field and literature data to test whether recurrent patterns in mutualistic networks (nestedness, modularity) describe the distributions of marine cleaning interactions. Nested network structures suggest that some cleaner species interact with many clients while the others clean fewer, predictable subsets of these clients; modular network structures suggest that cleaners and clients interact within defined, densely connected subsets of species. We used linear mixed models to evaluate whether the life‐history traits of cleaners contribute to the emergence of these patterns locally and whether environmental and geographical factors influence the network structures. Results Marine cleaning networks were more nested than modular. Nestedness was prevalent in communities with dedicated cleaners (ones that feed exclusively by cleaning), whereas communities with only facultative cleaners (ones that clean opportunistically) were generally unstructured. Cleaner type and taxa were the only traits shaping networks, with dedicated fish cleaners contributing disproportionally more than facultative cleaners and shrimps to the emergence of nestedness. Although cleaner species seem concentrated around the tropics and biodiversity centres, we did not detect an influence of environmental and geographical factors on network structures. Main conclusions Dedicated species are key in shaping the structure of marine cleaning mutualistic networks. By relying exclusively on cleaning to feed, dedicated cleaners interact with most of the available clients and form the network core, whereas the opportunistic facultative species tend to clean the most common clients. We hypothesize that trophic niche variation and phenotypic specialization are major drivers of this asymmetry in marine mutualisms. Our study strengthens the links between biotic interactions at the community level and the distribution of species and specializations at larger spatial scales.

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Fish cleaning interactions on a remote island in the Tropical Eastern Pacific

Cited by 26 publications

References 24 publications

Determinants of reef fish assemblages in tropical Oceanic islands

Determinants of reef fish assemblages in tropical Oceanic islands

Cleaning interactions by gobies on a tropical eastern Pacific coral reef

The global structure of marine cleaning mutualistic networks

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