BMAR - Actas de reuniões cientificas
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- Use of temperate reef fish community to identify priorities in the estabilishment of a marine protected areaPublication . Gonçalves, Emanuel João; Henriques, Miguel; Almada, Vítor CarvalhoFew studies have dealt with biodiversity, composition and dynamics of temperate reef fish. The present study area is a 25 km stretch of coastline (53 km2) on the west Portuguese coast that has recently been assigned as a Marine Park (Marine Park of the Arrábida Nature Park), for which basic information on composition of the marine communities is very scarce. From a biogeographical perspective, mainland Portugal is in a transitional zone where many species of cold- and warm-water fish reach their southern and northern limits of distribution respectively. This situation contributes strongly to a high level of biodiversity in the Lusitanian province, and also makes it very sensitive to climatic oscillations such as those predicted as part of global warming. This study analysed the fish community composition in the marine park and ascribed a hierarchical importance for the coastal sectors and the different habitats present. The results reflect the heterogeneous nature of the substrata present and their significant differences in biodiversity values and in the occurrence of rare species. For each species, dispersion and abundance indexes were calculated and species that require particular attention are noted. Appropriate management measures are suggested. Procedures for the implementation of these measures must be suited to a situation where basic biological information is scarce. This research is included in a broader project aimed at building a long-term database of the fish communities in this area, assessing the main factors influencing their structure and distribution patterns, and monitoring reserve effects in the long term.