Longitudinal distribution of the ichthyofauna in a tributary of Tietê River with sources on the Basaltic Cuestas of São Paulo, Southeastern Brazil

Abstract

This work aimed to study the composition and distribution of fish species at four sites along Cabeça River, an affluent of Corumbataí River, tributary of Tietê River, intending to better understand the influence of local geomorphology on the occurrence of the species along the river. Using gill nets, trawl net, cast net and sieves, five samples were taken from each site every two months. These data were analyzed from constancy of occurrence, similarity index of Jaccard, rarefaction analysis and descriptive statistical analysis of richness. 4,532 fish individuals belonging to six different orders, 17 families and 65 species were captured. Differences in composition, richness (diversity), abundance and frequency were observed at these sites along the river. The sample site near the mouth of Cabeça River, was richer (49 species) and more abundant than the other three upstream sites, which showed fewer species and equivalent amounts each other (between 22 and 29 species). Moreover, this downstream site had the highest percentage of accessory species, whereas the other samples had a greater number of constant species. Cluster analysis from the Jaccard similarity showed that each site had distinct species composition. Cabeça River basin drains a rugged terrain in the state of São Paulo, between the Basaltic Cuestas and Peripheral Depression geomorphologic provinces. In this scenario, waterfalls and rapids influence the distribution, composition and richness of fish species.

Ichthyofauna of the Ribeirão Frutal and tributaries, upper Rio Paraná basin, Minas Gerais, Southeastern Brazil

“…Langeani et al (2007) showed that Characidae and Loricariidae, in general, are the two most species-rich families of the upper Rio Paraná basin. In addition, several ichthyofaunal surveys (e.g., , Smith et al 2007, Oliveira et al 2009, Fagundes et al 2015, Hoffmann et al 2015, Cardoso et al 2016, Frota et al 2016 show this pattern in tributaries of the basin. However, in our work Cichlidae was the second most represented family (Fig.…”