<b>Habitat use by <i>Atherinella brasiliensis</i> (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) in intertidal zones of a subtropical estuary, Brazil

Abstract

ABSTRACT.Habitat use is different along the ontogenetic development of some species and may be influenced by environmental parameters. This study described the interaction of Atherinella brasiliensis caught in intertidal areas of the Paranaguá Estuarine Complex with environmental parameters. We caught 10024 individuals between August 2010 and July 2011, with total mean length of 44.32 mm (SD ± 25.37 mm), variation range between 12 and 142 mm, and weight between 0.01 and 73 g, averaging 1.35 g (SD ± 2.66 g) and ages estimated between < 1 and 22 months. Significant differences were detected between sectors and periods for number of individuals and weight at capture, with higher mean values in the mean sector during the rainy period. The spatial and temporal distribution of ages was statistically different, individuals between < 1 and 3 months were more abundant in the sector 2 during the rainy period, and individuals older than 7 months were evenly distributed throughout the sampling area, and with higher mean abundance at the beginning and end of the dry period. Environmental variables that most influenced the distribution of age classes were temperature and salinity.Keywords: Atheriniformes, distribution, age, environmental parameters.Uso do habitat por Atherinella brasiliensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) nas regiões intertidais de um estuário subtropical, Brasil RESUMO. O uso do habitat é diferenciado ao longo do desenvolvimento ontogenético em algumas espécies, podendo ser influenciado pelos parâmetros ambientais. O presente estudo descreve a interação da Atherinella brasiliensis capturada nas regiões intertidais do Complexo Estuarino de Paranaguá (CEP) com os parâmetros ambientais deste ambiente. Foram capturados 10024 indivíduos entre agosto de 2010 e julho de 2011, com comprimento total médio de 44,32 mm (DP = ± 25,37 mm), amplitude de variação entre 12 e 142 mm, e pesos entre 0,01 e 73 g, com média de 1,35g (DP = ± 2,66 g) e idades estimadas entre < 1 e 22 meses. Foram evidenciadas diferenças significativas entre setores e estações do ano no número de indivíduos e peso da captura, com maiores médias no setor mediano e na estação chuvosa. Diferenças estatísticas foram observadas na distribuição espaço-temporal das idades, com os indivíduos entre < 1 e 3 meses em média mais abundantes no setor 2 e período chuvoso, e os com indivíduos com idades acima de 7 meses igualmente distribuídos em toda a área amostral e com maior abundância média no início e final da seca. As variáveis ambientais que mais influenciaram na distribuição das classes etárias foram a temperatura e a salinidade.Palavras-chave: Atheriniformes, distribuição, idade, parâmetros ambientais.

Trade‐offs between ontogenetic changes and food consumption in Brazilian silverside Atherinella brasiliensis from two tropical estuaries

“…Individual growth rates in fish populations are highly dependent on food availability (Billerbeck et al ., 2001). Several studies have shown that A. brasiliensis changes its prey categories throughout multiple sites in estuaries (Alves et al ., 2016; Carvalho et al ., 2017; Carvalho & Spach, 2015; Contente et al ., 2010b), and this pattern appears to be associated with ecophysiological factors, as described by Cottingham et al . (2018).…”

“…Studies have shown that ontogenetic development patterns lead to changes in the resources exploited in various generalist fish species (Linke et al ., 2001; Pessanha & Araújo, 2014; Silva et al ., 2016). These niche changes, to capture larger prey due to increased mouth size and individual size, are interpreted as adaptations to the energy demands of fish in different size classes (Carvalho & Spach, 2015; Pessanha & Araújo, 2014; Ross et al ., 2006). This plasticity among different size classes may be a strategy used by fish to avoid intraspecific competition.…”

INSIGHTS ON THE INFLUENCE OF PHYLOGENETIC ON THE RELATIVE GROWTH USING <i>Atherinella brasiliensis</i> AS A TOOL

“…This species is expected to be abundant in shallow transitional environments, as it is considered an estuarine resident species (Andreata et al, 1990;Araújo et al, 1997). Individuals of all lengths can be caught in these regions throughout the year, as reported by Carvalho and Spach (2015), because this species completes its ontogenetic development in shallow areas.…”

“…Despite it is not efficiently caught by artisanal fishing, mainly due to the selectivity of the fishing gear used, A. brasiliensis is one of the most abundant species in both coastal and estuarine beach trawls in the south-southeast coast of Brazil (Vilar et al, 2011;Franco et al, 2013). This dominance occurs because the species spends most of its life cycle associated with shallow areas of estuaries, especially in locations with high environmental complexity such as marshes and mangroves (Fávaro et al, 2007;Carvalho and Spach, 2015;Golzio et al, 2017).…”

Intraspecific food resource partitioning in Brazilian silverside Atherinella brasiliensis (Atheriniformes: Atherinopsidae) in a tropical estuary, Brazil

“…The Brazilian Silverside, Atherinella brasiliensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1854), is a common estuarine resident and generalist species and is abundant in estuaries (Neves et al, 2006;Alves et al, 2016) and others nearshore shallow water ecosystems, as such beaches (Chagas, Junior, 2013;Lacerda et al, 2014;Favero, Dias, 2015), coastal lagoons (Andreata, 2012) and bays (Paiva Filho, Gianinni, 1990;Pessanha, Araújo, 2001;Carvalho, Spach, 2015). Furthermore, A. brasiliensis, show its important in a key structuring role in estuarine food webs (Campos et al, 2015;Figueiredo, Pessanha, 2016), because generalist species are able to feeding and exploit quantitatively on prey from multiple basal nutrient sources (Claudino et al, 2015).…”