Abstract
Fish fauna is considered a good indicator of water quality. The Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon is located in Rio de Janeiro city with a great scenic beauty. However, along the years, the Lagoon has been negatively impacted by human activities which can be seen in massive fish deaths and blooms of toxic algae. This study evaluated fish abundance and diversity in two historical periods, and between areas of capture. Multivariate data analyses were performed to find similar groups of fish fauna and to evaluate fish abundance and their seasonal and spatial variation. It was also used the algebraic language as a tool to combine raster layers as dissolved oxygen in surface, bathymetry and fish abundance by using rules and conditions involved in the fish zoning. The zone 2, located in the south-central area of the Lagoon, had the greatest number of species and higher values of dissolved oxygen. Mollies and menhaden had high abundance and occurred in all areas. There was a marked decrease in fish diversity and abundance in the second period. The results showed that surface dissolved oxygen and salinity were identified as important factors influencing the distribution and abundance of the main fish species at the Lagoon.
Highlights
Species distribution modelling is widely used in terrestrial and aquatic systems to predict species occurrence and to better understand the processes influencing their geographical distributions (MARTIN et al, 2012)
The Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas (Figure 1) is an urban lagoon located in the south zone (22o 59’ 5’’- 22o 57’ 25’’S; 43o 13’ 26’’ - 43o 11’ 35’’W) of Rio de Janeiro city, and its connection with the sea is artificially maintained by the channel of the Jardim of Alah
“peixe-rei”, Atherinella brasiliensis was the most abundant fish species in the four areas followed by P. vivipara
Summary
Species distribution modelling is widely used in terrestrial and aquatic systems to predict species occurrence and to better understand the processes influencing their geographical distributions (MARTIN et al, 2012). Habitat models are commonly developed from numerical estimates of species responses (e.g. occurrence, density) to changes in one or more environmental variables (MARTIN et al, 2012). According to Knudby (2010) the interaction between fish and their habitat operates over a wide range of spatial scales. The richness of native fish is considered to be an indicator of ecosystem health (IBARRA et al, 2003) due to their sensitivity to human disturbances, which alter community parameters (OBERDOFF et al, 1995). The changes in species richness, relative abundance and species
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