• IMAS Metadata Catalogue
  •  
  •  
  •  

Fish and invertebrate communities show greater day/night partitioning on tropical than temperate reefs

Diel partitioning of animals within ecological communities is widely acknowledged, yet rarely quantified. Investigation of most ecological patterns and processes involves convenient daylight sampling, with little consideration of the contributions of nocturnal taxa, particularly in marine environments. Here we assess diel partitioning of reef faunal assemblages at a continental scale utilizing paired day and night visual census across 54 shallow tropical and temperate reefs around Australia. Day/night differences were most pronounced in the tropics, with fishes and invertebrates displaying distinct and opposing diel occupancy on coral reefs. Tropical reefs in daytime were occupied primarily by fishes not observed at night (64% of all species sighted across day and night, and 71% of all individuals). By night, substantial emergence of invertebrates not otherwise detected during sunlit hours occurred (56% of all species, and 45% of individuals). Nocturnal emergence of tropical invertebrates corresponded with significant declines in the richness and biomass of predatory and herbivorous diurnal fishes. In contrast, relatively small diel changes in fishes active on temperate reefs corresponded to limited nocturnal emergence of temperate invertebrates. This reduced partitioning may, at least in part, be a result of strong top-down pressures from fishes on invertebrate communities, either by predation or competitive interference. For shallow reefs, the diel cycle triggers distinct emergence and retreat of faunal assemblages and associated trophic patterns and processes, which otherwise go unnoticed during hours of regular scientific monitoring. Improved understanding of reef ecology, and management of reef ecosystems, requires greater consideration of nocturnal interactions. Without explicit sampling of nocturnal patterns and processes, we may be missing up to half of the story when assessing ecological interactions.

Simple

Identification info

Date (Publication)
2024-09-20T00:00:00
Citation identifier
doi:10.25959/par1-eb98

Title
Information and documentation - Digital object identifier system
Date (Publication)
2024-09-20
Citation identifier
ISO 26324:2012

Citation identifier
https://doi.org/10.25959/par1-eb98

Resource provider

Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of Tasmania (UTAS)
Private Bag 129
Hobart
Tasmania
7001
Australia

Author

Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of Tasmania (UTAS) - Jones, Tyson
Private Bag 129
Hobart
TAS
7001
Australia
ORCID ID >

Credit
This work was financially supported by the Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment – Ecological Society of Australia and the CSIRO via a Research Plus Indigenous Postgraduate Scholarship Grant
Status
Completed

Point of contact

Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of Tasmania (UTAS) - Jones, Tyson
Hobart
TAS
7001
Australia
ORCID ID >

Topic category
  • Biota

Extent

N
S
E
W


Temporal extent

Time period
2020-11-21 2023-11-18
Maintenance and update frequency
Not planned
Keywords (Theme)
  • biodiversity
  • continental scale
  • nocturnal fauna
  • rocky reefs
Global Change Master Directory Earth Science Keywords, Version 8.5
  • EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS | COMMUNITY DYNAMICS | COMMUNITY STRUCTURE
  • EARTH SCIENCE | LAND SURFACE | GEOMORPHIC LANDFORMS/PROCESSES | COASTAL LANDFORMS | CORAL REEFS
  • EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS | ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONS | TROPHIC DYNAMICS
Keywords (Discipline)
  • Temperate Reef
AODN Discovery Parameter Vocabulary
  • Abundance of biota
Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC): Fields of Research
  • Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl. Marine Ichthyology)
AODN Geographic Extents Vocabulary
  • Countries | Countries | Australia

Resource constraints

Use limitation
Data, products and services from IMAS are provided "as is" without any warranty as to fitness for a particular purpose.

Resource constraints

Other constraints
This dataset is the intellectual property of the University of Tasmania (UTAS) through the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS).

Resource constraints

Linkage
https://licensebuttons.net/l/by/4.0/88x31.png

License Graphic

Title
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Alternate title
CC-BY
Edition
4.0


>

Website
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

License Text

Other constraints
Cite data as: Jones, T. (2024). Fish and invertebrate communities show greater day/night partitioning on tropical than temperate reefs [Data set]. Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies. https://doi.org/10.25959/PAR1-EB98
Language
English
Character encoding
UTF8
Supplemental Information
Fish and invertebrate communities show greater day/night partitioning on tropical than temperate reefs

Content Information

Content type
Physical measurement

Identifier

Code
Abundance of biota
Identifier
http://vocab.nerc.ac.uk/collection/P06/current/KGXX
Name
Kilograms

Distribution Information

Distribution format
  • CSV

OnLine resource
DATA ACCESS - download abundance + biomass data [.csv]

Resource lineage

Statement
Study Sites Standardized underwater visual census surveys were conducted during the day and at night at 54 reef sites distributed throughout tropical (n = 30) and temperate (n = 24) regions spanning the Australian continent (Figure. 1). Paired day and night transects were undertaken at each site to enable comparisons of reef communities between day and night. Site selection was opportunistic, whilst prioritizing broad biogeographical representation, habitat variability, and logistics of site accessibility and safety. Survey methods Diel variation in reef faunal assemblages was assessed using the Reef Life Survey (RLS) methodology (Edgar et al. 2020), during day and night periods between November 2020 and May 2023. Day surveys were undertaken during sunlit periods at least 3 hours after sunrise and 3 hours before sunset, whilst night surveys commenced 2 hours after sunset to mitigate confounding influences of the crepuscular period. At each site, an experienced 2-person dive team categorized reef faunal assemblages along one to three 50-m-transect lines, which were set along particular depth contours (contours ranged 1.5 – 15 m depth). A total of 142 surveys (71 in each of day and nighttime periods) were conducted across the 54 sites, with means across multiple transects averaged at the site level (see number of paired transects in Figure 1). Fish assemblages were categorized within a 5 m belt, conducted either side of the transect line (500 m2 total). Observations were also constrained to 5 m above the seabed and 5 m below the transect line in the event of surveying a vertical reef wall. The species identities, abundances, and sizes of all fishes’ present within the belt were recorded, with the diver able to deviate anywhere within the 5 m belt to search for species concealed amongst complex reef structure (i.e., cave entrances, ledges, benthic vegetation). When classing fish sizes (used for biomass calculations), a diver estimated the total length of an individual (i.e., from snout to furthest extension of caudal fin) and allocated that individual to the nearest of the following size categories; 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, 10.0, 12.5, 15.0, 20.0, 25.0, 30.0, 35.0, 40.0, 50.0, 62.5 and 75.0 cm. For individuals exceeding these size categories (i.e., sharks), size estimation was made to the nearest 12.5 cm (following Edgar et al 2004; see ‘Data manipulation and analysis’ for details). Following all fish counts, divers then returned down the transect line to quantify the identities, abundances and sizes of mobile invertebrate and cryptic fish species. Invertebrate observations were restricted to large (i.e., equal to or greater than 2.5 cm when mature) mobile mollusks, echinoderms, and crustaceans (Appendix S1: Table S1). Feather star species belonging to echinoderm family Crinoidea were recorded in field surveys but removed from analysis due to unreliable biomass estimates. Invertebrate sizing methods varied between taxa; crustacean species were measured by carapace length, urchins by test diameter (i.e., not including spines), sea stars by radial length (i.e., center point of body to tip of arm), and all other taxa by total length. Fish families categorized as ‘cryptic’ belonged to families listed in the Reef Life Survey Methods Manual (Appendix S1: Table S2). Observations of invertebrate and cryptic fish taxa were constrained to 1 m belt surveys either side of the transect line (total 100 m2), to ensure equal sampling effort and community representation across all taxa. With the diurnal survey complete, the transect line was left in place and marked by a surface float and GPS position to aid in site relocation for the night survey. Night surveys followed the same methodology as diurnal surveys, but using a LED white light dive torch (1,300 lumen, 120° beam, Big blue AL1300XWP) to locate and identify individuals within respective belts. Identification was performed in situ; any unidentifiable species were photographed and identified post-survey using appropriate field guides and consultation with experts.
Hierarchy level
Dataset
Hierarchy level
Dataset

Metadata

Metadata identifier
urn:uuid/24032fd2-249f-4b35-91fd-9aadee04ebe3

Language
English
Character encoding
UTF8

Distributor

IMAS Data Manager - Data Officer
Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies
Private Bag 129
Hobart
Tasmania
7001
Australia
Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) website >

Type of resource

Resource scope
Dataset
Name
IMAS Dataset level record
Metadata linkage
https://metadata.imas.utas.edu.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/catalog.search#/metadata/24032fd2-249f-4b35-91fd-9aadee04ebe3

Point of truth URL of this metadata record

Date info (Creation)
2024-09-18T00:00:00
Date info (Revision)
2024-09-20T11:54:52

Metadata standard

Title
ISO 19115-3:2018
 
 

Overviews

Spatial extent

N
S
E
W


Keywords

biodiversity continental scale nocturnal fauna rocky reefs
AODN Discovery Parameter Vocabulary
Abundance of biota
Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC): Fields of Research
Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl. Marine Ichthyology)
Global Change Master Directory Earth Science Keywords, Version 8.5
EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS | COMMUNITY DYNAMICS | COMMUNITY STRUCTURE EARTH SCIENCE | BIOSPHERE | ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS | ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONS | TROPHIC DYNAMICS EARTH SCIENCE | LAND SURFACE | GEOMORPHIC LANDFORMS/PROCESSES | COASTAL LANDFORMS | CORAL REEFS

Provided by

Share on social sites

Access to the record in catalogue
Read here the full details and access to the data.

Associated resources

Not available


  •  
  •  
  •