Mud-walled territories and feeding behaviour ofBoleophthalmus boddarti (Pisces: Gobiidae) on the Mudflats of Kuwait

Abstract

-At high population densities, the amphibious and herbivorous mudskipperBoleophthalmus boddarti construct mud walls around their territories as a means of reducing aggression between neighbours. Because of the walls, territories contain pools of water and exposed mud slopes. Whilst the density of benthic diatom prey was highly variable, the highest was found on the exposed mud slopes and the lowest on the boundary walls. Fish grazed mainly on the mud slopes. There were no significant differences in diatom density between territorial and non-territorial areas or between grazed and non-grazed areas within territories. The variation of the diatom density, however, was reduced within territories. The mud walls are considered to play a secondary, indirect role in maintaining populations of diatoms within territories.

Distribution, diversity, and abundance of rocky intertidal fishes in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, Iran

“…There are only a few studies on the rocky intertidal fishes of the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. The basic behavioural characteristics of Boleophthalmus boddarti (Pallas, 1770) were studied by Clayton & Vaughan (1988) and studies on wall construction behaviour on the mudflats of Kuwait were conducted by Clayton (1987), Clayton & Vaughan (1982, 1986, Clayton & Wright (1989). Following these, morphological, physiological and behavioural characteristics of mudskippers (genera Boleophthalmus, Periophthalmus, Periophthalmodon, and Scartelaos) were reviewed by Clayton (1993).…”

Why does the mudskipper Boleophthalmus pectinirostris form territories in farming ponds?

“…In this study, the territorial sediments exhibited a significantly greater benthic microalgal biomass (chlorophyll-a and total chlorophyll-a) as compared to the sediment without water, possibly due to the shallow water within the territories. In B. boddarti, there were no significant differences in diatom density between territorial and non-territorial areas (Clayton & Wright, 1989). This result is not consistent with the present study.…”

History and current checklist of Kuwait's ichthyofauna

“…It is now clear from Al-Hassan et al 's (1988) work that at least two species of catfish were involved. Other studies of Kuwait's fishes include noncommercial species (Clayton & Vaughan, 1986Clayton & Wright, 1989;Wright, 1989a;Ismail & Clayton, 1990) and shallow water assemblages (Wright, 1988a(Wright, , b, 1989bWright et al, 1990Wright et al, , 1996Abou-Seedo et al 1990;Abou-Seedo, 1992).…”

“…In addition to species new to science, Kuwait has other globally important aspects of its ichthyofauna. Dussumier's mudskipper, Boleophthalmus dussumieri ["B. boddarti], constructs polygon-shaped territories in Sulaibikhat Bay (Clayton, 1986;Clayton & Vaughan, 1982;Clayton & Wright, 1989). This behavior is not only unique to Kuwait, but unique to specific areas within Sulaibikhat Bay.…”