Herbivorous Fish Behavior Along the Northern Line Islands Human Fishing Pressure Gradient

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Abstract/Contents

Abstract: “Fishing-down-the-food-chain” causes both trophic cascades and shifting baselines. Yet documented changes in herbivore abundance as a consequence of trophic cascades in marine and coral reef ecosystems are inconsistent. In marine ecosystems perhaps biomass is not the best indicator of trophic cascades, and fishing pressure inflicts more subtle changes such as shifts in herbivore behavior. The purpose of this study is to evaluate differences in whitecheek surgeonfish (Acanthurus nigricans) behavior across Kingman, Palmyra, and Kiritimati atolls and interpret them in the context of a known human disturbance gradient among atolls. “Focal follows” were conducted on the whitecheek surgeonfish in order to determine frequency of a suite of behaviors across the human impact gradient. At the least impacted site, Kingman, whitecheek surgeonfish exhibited more behaviors of fear (hiding more and swimming and hovering less) than at the most impacted site, Kiritimati. Kingman emerged as a truly separate ecosystem than that of Palmyra— a bona fide baseline to provide a benchmark for scientists and policy makers against which recovery of other reefs can be documented. Better understanding herbivorous reef fish behavior in pristine ecosystems like Kingman and Palmyra and those impacted like Kiritimati is imperative to determine the effect of overfishing apex predators on shifting baselines and marine trophic cascades.

Type of resource	text
Date created	June 10, 2011

Author	Kingsland, Haley

Subject	Stanford@SEA
Subject	S-235
Subject	Hopkins Marine Station
Subject	Department of Biology
Subject	Department of Earth System Science
Subject	BIOHOPK 182H
Subject	BIOHOPK 323H
Subject	EARTHSYS 323
Subject	ESS 323
Subject	herbivorous fish
Subject	Kingman Reef
Subject	Palmyra Atoll
Subject	whitecheek surgeonfish
Genre	Student project report

Location	https://purl.stanford.edu/ss205nw6650

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License: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (CC BY).

Preferred Citation: Haley Kingsland, 2011. Herbivorous Fish Behavior Along the Northern Line Islands Human Fishing Pressure Gradient. Unpublished student research paper, S-235, Stanford@SEA, Stanford Digital Repository. https://purl.stanford.edu/ss205nw6650.

Stanford@SEA -- Student papers

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