Influence of some cological features of the adult fishes on spatial distribution of their larvae near coral reefs at Hurghada, Egyptian Red Sea

Abstract

he distribution of fish larvae near coral reefs can be influenced by physical and biological factors. This paper aims to determine the influence of some ecological features of adult fish on the distribution of their larva stages at offshore and inshore sites. The spawning mode of the adults, their habitats and the depth of water column at which they live were investigated. Fish larval were collected from Hurghada by plankton net of 0.5 mm mesh size from January to December 2005. The Chi square test showed that the distribution of fish larvae in the area was dependent on the spawning mode and neither on the adult habitat nor the depth they live at. The analysis of variance ANOVA indicated that the distribution of larvae of pelagic fishes was significantly different between offshore and inshore sites. The study has provided further information on the distributional patterns of the larvae of coral reef fishes that help to understand the interrelationships among fish species during their larval stages.