Population biology and habitat associations of benthic fish species in the shallow areas of a Mediterranean coastal lagoon (SE Iberian Peninsula)

Abstract

The present study investigates the seasonal variation in fish abundance, fish biomass, reproductive status and population structure of four dominant benthic fish species, Salaria pavo, Pomatoschistus marmoratus, Gobius cobitis and Gobius niger, in the shallow and littoral areas of the Mar Menor coastal lagoon. In addition, the seasonal habitat associations of each species were studied by assessing environmental variables related to the habitat structure: submerged vegetation cover, submerged vegetation density, water depth and substrate composition. The temporal variations in fish density, standing stock and size frequency distributions of these species can largely be attributed to the seasonality of their breeding and juvenile recruitment periods. Moreover, habitat associations for these species were similar to those obtained in other Mediterranean and Atlantic coastal lagoons.