Abstract
Abstract Marinheiros is the largest island of the estuarine archipelago of Patos lagoon and is considered an area of biological relevance in the coastal region of the extreme south of Brazil. Aiming to contribute to the knowledge on the biodiversity of this important area, we conducted an ichthyofaunistic inventory in the limnic environments of the island. Twenty-seven field trips were performed between April 2015 and May 2017. A total of 12 sites representative of habitats of an intermittent shallow lagoon, intermittent pools and a perennial artificial channel were sampled. Sampling of 2,436 specimens revealed the occurrence of 30 species, including the non-native piscivorous Acestrorhynchus pantaneiro. Characiformes was the most diverse order (18 species), followed by Cichliformes (four species) and Cyprinodontiformes (three species). Characiformes was also the most numerically abundant order (77%) followed by Cichliformes (17.6%) and Cyprinodontiformes (5.1%). The species richness recorded in Marinheiros Island is is comparable to the richness observed for lotic systems of southernmost Brazilian coastal plain. The fish assemblage is composed mainly of species of limnic habits whereas few taxa of estuarine-marine-limnic and estuarine-limnic habits were recorded. In view of the presence of allochtonous A. pantaneiro and its potential to impact native species, monitoring is recommended to the ichthyofauna of Marinheiros Island and the other estuarine islands, as well as peninsular systems connected to Patos lagoon estuary.
Highlights
Patos lagoon is the world’s largest choked lagoon, extending over 240 km on the southernmost Brazilian coastal plain (Kjerfve 1986)
The estuarine zone of Patos lagoon is characterized by the presence an archipelago composed by eight main islands and several islets emerged during the Holocene
The limnic enviroments of Marinheiros Island house an ichthyofaunistic diversity within the range observed for lotic systems in southernmost Brazilian coastal plain, which is between 22 (Fortaleza lagoon; Schifino et al, 2004) and 67 species (Peixe lagoon; Loebmann & Vieira 2005)
Summary
Patos lagoon is the world’s largest choked lagoon, extending over 240 km on the southernmost Brazilian coastal plain (Kjerfve 1986). Sampling efforts on anuran (Quintela et al 2007, 2009, Bernardo-Silva et al 2012, Dalmolin et al 2017), reptilian (Quintela et al 2011) and avian fauna (Gianuca et al 2007, 2008, 2012) in the insular environments have identified the occurrence of some unexpected taxa for the region, including the southernmost and isolated population of the threatened red-bellied toad Melanophryniscus dorsalis (Mertens, 1933) (Quintela et al 2006, Bernardo-Silva et al 2012) While some groups such as herpetofauna and avifauna are relatively well-known in the island, the ichthyofauna remained practically unexplored. Marinheiros shelters a peculiar complex of intermittent shallow lagoons and pools, which consist of potential habitats for the fish fauna
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