Species composition of fish from sea grass bed in Chuuk Lagoon, Micronesia

Abstract

The fish species composition of seagrass bed in Chuuk Lagoon, Micronesia, was investigated every month from August 2009 to July 2011, using a seine net for fish caught. A total of 32 fish species belonging to 18 families under 6 orders were identified during the study period. Of these fish, Atherinomrus lacunosus, and Strongylura incise were the major dominant species representing 85.0% in total number of individuals. The number of species and individuals were high from August to December 2009, 2010. The biomass was highest in September 2010 and the diversity index was higher in September 2009, April, August 2010 and July 2011. The 14 dominant species could be divided into 2 groups of 3 individuals based on appearance patterns; (1) resident species and temporal species (9 species, e.g. Atherinomrus lacunosus), juvenile and adults living in seagrass beds and juveniles living only in seagrass beds; (2) temporal species (2 species, e.g. Hemiramphus lutkei), juveniles living only in seagrass beds; (3) temporal species (3 individuals, e.g. Caranx sexfasiatus). For some species, the appearance patterns were affected by water temperature. However, the relationships between sea currents, salinity, tide, and structure of fish assemblage remain unclear. Further studies that regularly monitor sea grass habitats are necessary to clearly understand the correlation between environmental factors and sea grass habitat use patterns in fish assemblages.