Nocturnal planktonic assemblages of amphipods vary due to the presence of coastal aquaculture cages

Abstract

Nocturnal pelagic swimming is common in the daily activity of peracarids in marine ecosystems. Fish farming facilities in coastal areas constitute an optimal artificial habitat for invertebrates such as amphipods, which can reach high abundance and biomass in fouling communities. Additionally, fish farms may modify the local oceanographic conditions and the distribution of pelagic communities. The aim of this study was to determine if nocturnal abundance and species composition of planktonic amphipod assemblages are affected by fish farm structures, using light traps as collecting method. A total of 809 amphipods belonging to 21 species were captured in farm areas, compared to 42 individuals and 11 species captured in control areas. The most important species contributing to the dissimilarity between farms and controls were the pelagic hyperiid Lestrigonus schizogeneios, the fouling inhabitants Ericthonius punctatus, Jassa marmorata, Stenothoe sp. and Caprella equilibra, and the soft-bottom gammarids Periculodes aequimanus and Urothoe pulchella. The great concentrations of planktonic amphipods at fish farm facilities is a result of the input of individuals from fouling communities attached to aquaculture facilities, along with the potential retention there of hyperiids normally present in the water column and migrant amphipods from soft sediments. Therefore, in addition to the effects of aquaculture on benthic communities, the presence of fish farms induces major changes in planktonic assemblages of invertebrates such as amphipods.