What influences European plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) distribution in the eastern English Channel? Using habitat modelling and GIS to predict habitat utilization

Abstract

Conservation of fish habitat requires knowledge of how spatial distributions of species are related to environmental factors. Habitat modelling and mapping are useful in predicting speciesenvironment relationships. Species abundance is modelled as a function of environmental parameters to understand species habitat utilization better. The influence of environmental factors on plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) distribution was investigated for two life stages and over two seasons. Generalized linear modelling and quantile regression modelling were used to relate the relative abundance of (juvenile and adult) fish to environmental predictors (seawater temperature, salinity, water column depth, bed-shear stress, and sediment type) in autumn and summer. The resulting regression parameters were used to map preferential and potential habitat distributions within a geographic information system. Models were evaluated by comparing predicted against observed abundances. Seabed sediment type was the main significant predictor of plaice preferential and potential habitats, whereas other factors did not show such a clear influence. The results contribute to a better understanding of the spatial ecology of the species. © 2011 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea.