We are back on Abaco checking out the reefs we built last summer. Incredible how many fish have moved to them just 5 months after they were built. One of projects this trip will be to compile a complete food web of one reef – what are all of these fish eating? We will provide updates as we go.
Fish Mansions Intact
About the Author: Craig Layman
My lab’s interdisciplinary pursuits provide for a multi-faceted understanding of environmental change in the coastal realm. We are ecologists, asking questions that span population, community, ecosystem and evolutionary sub-disciplines. We often use a food web based perspective, exploring top-down (e.g., predation) and bottom-up (e.g., nutrient excretion) mechanisms by which animals affect ecosystem processes. All of our efforts are framed within a broader outreach framework, directly integrating science and education, using approaches such as this website.
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It would be interesting to leave s GoPro recording in the various sized openings and compare fine-scale interactions between individuals in the differently sized spaces.
That is really, really awesome.
Jake, how does the size and type of block get chosen? Does this block approximate a facet of the ideal natural reef? Does the composition of the block matter? There are many types of cement / aggregate / admixture blocks. Fascinating work. Good on ‘ya.
Hi Joseph,
Good question. The size of the blocks were chosen essentially to meet a standard size that we could find across the different regions where we are conducting these experiments – primarily The Bahamas and Haiti – to maintain consistencies among all reefs. The primary function that these reef provide fish is structure – which is one critical aspect that natural reefs offer fishes, but on real reefs the holes are going to be highly variable. And with respect to the cement type, we just use blocks made locally and thus are essentially made form a similar rock composition as the local habitats. We think the type of rock likely matters more for the things that actually settle on the rock like coral or algae, but not so much for the fish. Great questions, thanks for you interest.
Jake