Northern Adriatic Rocky Reef Fishes at Low Winter Temperatures |
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| Authors: | Kurt Kotrschal |
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| Institution: | Zoologisches Institut der Universität, Akademiestrafle 26, A-5020 Salzburg, Austria |
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| Abstract: | Abstract. The behavioural ecology of certain northern Adriatic fishes was observed from January to April at a water temperature of 7–11 oC. The fishes studied here do not migrate to deeper waters. Most of the benthic fishes show a similar distribution over the substrate in winter and in summer; in winter, however, they are very inactive and hide in the substrate. Suprabenthic fishes aggregate in littoral caves where they form dense, inactive, mixed aggregations. Certain hemipelagic and pelagic fishes join to form very dense aggregations at specific sites in the open waters of bays. Littoral predators display high feeding activity at a time when their prey is inactive. I present a hypothesis concerning possible implications of seasonally cyclic environmental temperatures for a sympatric community of non-migrating fishes. |
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| Keywords: | driatic rocky reef fishes behavioural ecology aggregation behaviour thermal ecology activity shifts |
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