Co-occurrence patterns of fish communities in littorals of three floodplain lakes of the Orinoco River, Venezuela

Article Sidebar

PDF/A HTML
Published: Jun 26, 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2710.9.6.10249-10260
Keywords:
Hydrological phases, local scale, null models, spatial segregation, temporal variation.

Main Article Content

Gabriela E. Echevarría
Laboratorio de Biología de Organismos, Centro de Ecología, Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones científicas, Avenida Panamericana, kilómetro 11, Altos de Pipe, Caracas 1020-A Dirección postal apartado 21827, Miranda, Venezuela
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9353-6696
Nirson González
Laboratorio de Ecología de Peces, Estación de Investigaciones Hidrobiológicas de Guayana, Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales. Campus Guayana, Avenida Alonso de Herrera, San Félix, 8051, Bolívar, Venezuela
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7593-1024

Abstract

The co-occurrence patterns of fish communities in the littorals of three lagoons of the Orinoco River floodplain in Venezuela were studied during four hydrological phases: low, rising, high and falling waters, from 2008–2009, using null models.  The analyses were made separately for each floodplain lake and for each habitat type within them.  During low waters only one lake showed a segregated pattern in beaches covered with leaf litter, whereas in the other floodplain lakes the communities were randomly assembled in all habitats during the four hydrological phases.  Despite the absence of a significant overall structure, several significantly aggregated and segregated species pairs were observed in the three lakes.  The temporal variation might be the main factor responsible for the co-occurrence patterns observed in these floodplain lakes due to the periodic reshuffling of littoral habitats. 

Article Details

Issue
Vol. 9 No. 6 (2017)
Section
Articles

Authors own the copyright to the articles published in JoTT.  This is indicated explicitly in each publication. The authors grant permission to the publisher Wildlife Information Liaison Development (WILD) Society to publish the article in the Journal of Threatened Taxa. The authors recognize WILD as the original publisher, and to sell hard copies of the Journal and article to any buyer. JoTT is registered under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY), which allows authors to retain copyright ownership.  Under this license the authors allow anyone to download, cite, use the data, modify, reprint, copy and distribute provided the authors and source of publication are credited through appropriate citations (e.g., Son et al. (2016). Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) of the southeastern Truong Son Mountains, Quang Ngai Province, Vietnam. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(7): 8953–8969. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2785.8.7.8953-8969). Users of the data do not require specific permission from the authors or the publisher.

Author Biographies

Gabriela E. Echevarría, Laboratorio de Biología de Organismos, Centro de Ecología, Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones científicas, Avenida Panamericana, kilómetro 11, Altos de Pipe, Caracas 1020-A Dirección postal apartado 21827, Miranda, Venezuela

Gabriela Echevarría recently completed her PhD studies in ecology in the Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Research.

Nirson González, Laboratorio de Ecología de Peces, Estación de Investigaciones Hidrobiológicas de Guayana, Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales. Campus Guayana, Avenida Alonso de Herrera, San Félix, 8051, Bolívar, Venezuela

 Nirson González is a researcher in the Station of Hydrobiological Research of La Salle Foundation of Natural Sciences, where he is in charge of the Laboratory of Fish Ecology and the Collection of Fishes of Guayana.

References

Arrington, D.A. & K.O. Winemiller (2006). Habitat affinity, the seasonal flood pulse, and community assembly in the littoral zone of a Neotropical floodplain river. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 25: 126–141; http://doi.org/10.1899/0887-3593(2006)25[126:HATSFP]2.0.CO;2

Arrington, D. A., K.O. Winemiller & C. Layman (2005). Community assembly at the patch scale in a species rich tropical river. Oecologia 144: 157–67; http://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-005-0014-7

Barili, E., A.A. Agostinho, L.C. Gomes & J.D. Latini (2011). The coexistence of fish species in streams: relationships between assemblage attributes and trophic and environmental variables. Environmental Biology of Fishes 92: 41–52; http://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-011-9814-2

Ceneviva-Bastos, M., L. Casatti & D.C. Rossa-Feres (2010). Meso and microhabitat analysis and feeding habits of small nektonic characins (Teleostei: Characiformes) in Neotropical streams. Zoologia 27: 191–200; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1984-46702010000200006

Clarke, K.R. & R.M. Warwick (2001). Change in Marine Communities: An Approach to Statistical Analysis and Interpretation. Second Edition. Plymouth Marine Laboratory. Plymouth: PRIMER - E, 172pp.

Clarke, K.R. & R.N. Gorley (2006). PRIMER v6: User Manual/Tutorial. Plymouth Marine Laboratory. Plymouth: PRIMER - E, 192pp.

Connor, E.F. & D. Simberloff (1979). The assembly of species communities: chance or competition? Ecology 60: 1132–1140; http://doi.org/10.2307/1936961

Covain, R. & S. Fisch-Muller (2007). The genera of the Neotropical armored catfish subfamily Loricariinae (Siluriformes : Loricariidae ): a practical key and synopsis. Zootaxa 40: 1–40.

Diamond, J. (1975). Assembly Rules, pp. 342–444. In: Cody, M. & J. Diamond (eds.). Ecology and Evolution of Communities. Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 560pp.

Fernandes, I. M., R. Henriques-Silva, J. Penha, J. Zuanon & P.R. Peres-Neto (2013). Spatiotemporal dynamics in a seasonal metacommunity structure is predictable: the case of floodplain-fish communities. Ecography 37: 464–475; http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0587.2013.00527.x

González, N. & C. Vispo (2004). Ecología trófica de algunos peces importantes en lagunas de inundación del bajo río Caura, Estado Bolívar, Venezuela. Memoria de la Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales, “2003â€: 147–183.

González, N., C. Lasso & J. Rosales (2009). Stability and spatio-temporal structure in fish assemblages of two floodplain lagoons of the lower Orinoco River. Neotropical Ichthyology 7: 719–736; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252009000400022

Gotelli, N.J., N. Buckley & J. Wiens (1997). Co-occurrence of Australian birds: Diamond’s assembly rules revisited. Oikos 80: 311–324; http://doi.org/10.2307/3546599

Gotelli, N.J. (2000). Null model analysis of species co-occurrence patterns. Ecology 81: 2606– 2621; http://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(2000)081[2606:NMAOSC]2.0.CO;2

Gotelli, N.J. & D.J. McCabe (2002). Species Co-Occurrence: A Meta-Analysis of J. M. Diamond’s Assembly Rules Model. Ecology 83: 2091-2096; http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3072040.

Götzenberger, L., F. de Bello, K.A. Bråthen, J. Davison, A. Dubuis, A. Guisan, J. Lepš, R. Lindborg, M. Moora, M. Pärtel, L. Pellissier, J. Pottier, P. Vittoz, K. Zobel & M. Zobel (2011). Ecological assembly rules in plant communities-approaches, patterns and prospects. Biological Reviews 87: 111–127; http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469- 185X.2011.00187.x

Géry, J. (1977). Characoids of The World. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Neptune City, 672pp.

Hoeinghaus, D.J., K.O. Winemiller & J.S. Birnbaum (2006). Local and regional determinants of stream fish assemblage structure : inferences based on taxonomic vs. functional groups. Journal of Biogeography 34: 1–15; http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2699.2006.01587.x

Horner-Devine, M.C., J.M. Silver, M. Leibold, B.J. Bohannan, R.K. Colwell, J.A. Fuhrman, J.L. Green, C.R. Kuske, J.B.H. Martiny, G. Muyzer, L. Ovreås, A.L. Reysenbach & V.H. Smith (2007). A comparison of taxon co-occurrence patterns for macro- and microorganisms. Ecology 88: 1345–53; http://doi.org/10.1890/06-0286

Hubbell, S. (2001). The Unified Neutral Theory of Biodiversity and Biogeography. New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 390pp.

Jackson D., P.R. Peres-Neto & J.D. Olden (2001). What controls who is where in freshwater fish communities - the roles of biotic, abiotic, and spatial factors. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 58: 157–170; http://doi.org/10.1139/f00-239

Jackson, D., K.M. Somers & H.H. Harvey (1992). Null models and fish communities: evidence of nonrandom patterns. The American Naturalist 139: 930–951.

Junk, W. & K. Wantzen (2004). The flood pulse concept: new aspects, approaches and applications - an update, pp. 117–141. In: Welcomme R. & T. Petr (eds.). Proceedings of the Second International Symposium on the Management of Large Rivers for Fisheries. Bangkok, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, 370pp.

Lasso, C. (2004). Los peces de la Estación Biológica El Frío y Caño Guaritico (estado Apure), Llanos del Orinoco, Venezuela. Madrid, UNESCO, Comité Español del Programa Hombre y Biósfera - Red IberoMaB, 245pp.

Lasso, C. & A. Machado-Allison (2000). Sinopsis de las especies de peces de la familia Cichlidae presentes en la cuenca del río Orinoco: claves, diagnosis, aspectos bio - ecológicos e ilustraciones. Universidad Central de Venezuela, Facultad de Ciencias, Instituto de Zoología Tropical, Museo de Biología, Caracas, 171pp.

Lima T., F.L. Tejerina-Garro & C.E. de Melo (2009). Influence of environmental parameters on fish assemblage of a Neotropical river with a flood pulse regime, central Brazil. Neotropical Ichthyology 7: 421–428; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252009000300009

Lowe-McConnell, R.H. (1975). Fish Communities in Tropical Freshwaters. Their Distribution, Ecology and Evolution. Longman Inc., New York, 337pp.

Machado-Allison, A. (1973). Contribución al conocimiento de la taxonomía del género Cichla (Perciformes: Cichlidae) en Venezuela. Parte II. Acta Biologica Venezuelica 8: 155–205.

Machado-Allison, A. (1995). Sinopsis de las especies de la subfamilia Serrasalminae presentes en la cuenca del Orinoco: claves, diagnosis e ilustraciones. Serie Espe. Universidad Central de Venezuela, Facultad de Ciencias, Instituto de Zoología Tropical, Museo de Biología, Caracas, 91pp.

Machado-Allison, A. (2005). Los Peces de Los Llanos de Venezuela: Un Ensayo sobre su Historia Natural, 2nd edition. Caracas, Consejo de Desarrollo Científico y Humanístico, Universidad Central de Venezuela, 144pp.

Mago-Leccia, F. (1994). Electric Fishes of The Continental Waters of America. Fundación para el Desarrollo de las Ciencias Físicas, Matemáticas y Naturales, Caracas, Venezuela, 226pp.

Malabarba, M. (2004). Revision of the Neotropical genus Triportheus Cope, 1872 (Characiformes: Characidae). Neotropical Ichthyology 2:167–204; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252004000400001

Malabarba, L.R., P.C. Neto, V.A. Bertaco, T.P. Carvalho, J.F. Santos & L.G.S. Artioli (2013). Guia de identificação dos peixes da bacia do rio Tramandaí. Porto Alegre, Ed.Via Sapiens, 140pp.

Mérona, B. de & J. Rankin-de-Mérona (2004). Food resource partitioning in a fish community of the central Amazon floodplain. Neotropical Ichthyology 2: 75–84; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252004000200004

Montaña, C.G., C.A. Layman & D.C. Taphorn (2008). Comparison of fish assemblages in two littoral habitats in a Neotropical morichal stream in Venezuela. Neotropical Ichthyology 6: 577–582;

http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252008000400005

Montaña, C.G., C.A. Layman & K.O. Winemiller (2015). Species-area relationship within benthic habitat patches of a tropical floodplain river: An experimental test. Austral Ecology 40(3): 331–336; http://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12218

Peres-Neto, P.R. (2004). Patterns in the co-occurrence of fish species in streams: the role of site suitability, morphology and phylogeny versus species associations. Oecologia 140: 352–60; http://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-004-1578-3

Poff, N. (1997). Landscape filters and species traits: towards mechanistic understanding and prediction in stream ecology. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 16: 391–409; http://doi.org/10.2307/1468026

Presidencia de la Republica de Venezuela (2016). Decreto N° 2.248 mediante el cual se crea la zona de Desarrollo Estratégico Nacional “Arco Mineroâ€. Gaceta Oficial de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela N° 40.855, año CXLIII – mes V: 426512–426521.

Rodrigues, M., T.M. Mattos, J.L. Borges & F.G. Araújo (2013). Habitat preferences of common native fishes in a tropical river in southeastern Brazil. Neotropical Ichthyology 11: 871–880; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252013000400015

Rondón-Suárez, M.P. & A.C. Catella (2004). Factors regulating diversity and abundance of fish communities in Pantanal lagoons, Brazil. Fisheries Management and Ecology 11(1): 45–50; http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2400.2004.00347.x

Sabaj, M.H. (2005). Taxonomic assessment of Leptodoras (Siluriformes: Doradidae) wih descriptions of three new species. Neotropical Ichthyology 3:637–678; http://doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252005000400020

Southwood, T. (1977). Habitat, the templet for ecological strategies? Journal of Animal Ecology 46: 336–365.

Stone, L. & A. Roberts (1992). Competitive exclusion, or species aggregation? An aid in deciding. Oecologia 91: 419–424; http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00317632

Taphorn, D. (1992). The Characiform Fishes of the Apure River Drainage. Biollania, 4 (Edición especial), 537pp.

Thorp, J., M. Thoms & M. Delong (2008). The Riverine Ecosystem Synthesis. Elsevier, London, 233pp.

Ulrich, W. (2008). Pairs - a FORTRAN program for studying pair-wise species associations in ecological matrices. Version 1.0. http://www.keib.umk.pl/pairs/?lang=en. Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń Department of Animal Ecology, Gagarina, Poland, 8 pp. Downloaded on 20 May 2013.

Ulrich, W. & N. J. Gotelli (2013). Pattern detection in null model analysis. Oikos 122: 2–18; http://doi.org/10.2307/41937637

Valbo-Jørgensen, J. (2000). Fish biomass and density in macrophyte habitats in floodplain lakes of the Orinoco Basin, Venezuela. Memoria de la Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales, LX: 35–50.

Vari, R.P. (1989a). Systematics of the neotropical characiform genus Psectrogaster Eigenmann and Eigenmann (Pisces: Characiformes). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 481:1–43.

Vari, R.P. (1989b). Systematics of the Neotropical Characiform genus Curimata Bosc (Pisces: Characiformes). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 474:35.

Vari, R.P., R.M.C. Castro & S.J. Raredon (1995). The Neotropical Fish Family Chilodontidae (Teleostei: Characiformes): a phylogenetic study and revision of Caenotropus Günter. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 577: 20.

Walsh, S.J. (1990). A systematic revision of the neotropical catfish family Ageneiosidae (Teleostei: Ostariosphysi: Siluriformes). Doctoral Thesis, University of Florida, 375pp.

Winemiller, K.O., A.A. Agostinho & É. Caramaschi (2008). Fish Ecology in Tropical Streams. In: Dudgeon, D. (ed.). Tropical Stream Ecology. London, Elsevier Inc, 343pp; http://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012088449-0.50007-8

Winemiller, K.O. (1996). Dynamic Diversity in Fish Assemblages of Tropical Rivers, pp. 99–134. In: Cody, M.L. & J.A. Smallwood (eds.). Long-Term Studies of Vertebrate Communities. San Diego, Academic Press Inc, 597pp.

Winemiller, K.O. & E. Pianka (1990). Organization in Natural Assemblages of Desert Lizards and Tropical Fishes. Ecological Monographs 60: 27–55; http://doi.org/10.2307/1943025