Life strategies of fishes in European estuaries: the functional guild approach

Marine Ecology Progress Series

Piero Franzoi¹  Patrizia Torricelli¹  Michael Elliott¹  Anita Franco¹ 

关键词: Fish assemblage;    Functional groups;    Estuary use;    Feeding mode;    Reproductive mode;    European estuaries;   

DOI  :  10.3354/meps07203

学科分类：海洋学与技术

来源: Inter-Research

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACT: The structure and functioning of estuarine fish assemblages have been analysed using data sets for 38 transitional waters covering all European latitudes, including NE Atlantic estuaries, Mediterranean lagoons and Scandinavian fjords. The fish species were assigned to functional guilds covering estuarine use, mode of feeding and reproductive strategy, thus describing the use made of transitional waters by fishes. The importance of estuaries as temporary biotopes (migration and nursery routes) for fish species has been identified together with the predominance of feeding on the detritivorous hyperbenthos and infauna. The high incidence of protective breeders in estuaries, as a mechanism to prevent the flushing out of young, has also been identified. These findings allow the validation of the functional guild approach, emphasising its use for the understanding of the functioning of estuaries and for their management and the protection of their ecological goods and services.

【 授权许可】

Unknown