Short-Term Changes in Two Tropical Coastal Lagoons: Effects of Sandbar Openings on Fish Assemblages

Abstract

ABSTRACT Camara, E.M.; Caramaschi, E.P.; Di Dario, F., and Petry, A.C., 2018. Short-term changes in two tropical coastal lagoons: Effects of sandbar openings on fish assemblages. Sandbar openings (SBOs) are among the largest possible disturbances in coastal lagoons. This study investigated the mechanisms of the responses of fish assemblages to short-term environmental changes resulting from several SBOs during 1 year in two coastal lagoons in southeastern Brazil. Lagoons were sampled monthly in sites closer to, and more distant from, the sandbars. A principal component analysis summarized limnological differences between periods of contact and isolation from the sea, and site- and lagoon-based variation partitioning and independent redundancy analyses (RDAs) quantified the unique and shared effects of limnology, space, and period on species and groups of species (marine, estuarine, and freshwater). Limnological differences between periods were associated with a higher marine influence during SBOs and an i...