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An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs

Artificial structures are the dominant complex marine habitat type along the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) shelf. These habitats can consist of a variety of materials, but in this region are primarily comprised of active and reefed oil and gas platforms. Despite being established for several dec...

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Autores principales: Ajemian, Matthew J., Wetz, Jennifer J., Shipley-Lozano, Brooke, Shively, J. Dale, Stunz, Gregory W.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2015
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4425496/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25954943
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0126354
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author Ajemian, Matthew J.
Wetz, Jennifer J.
Shipley-Lozano, Brooke
Shively, J. Dale
Stunz, Gregory W.
author_facet Ajemian, Matthew J.
Wetz, Jennifer J.
Shipley-Lozano, Brooke
Shively, J. Dale
Stunz, Gregory W.
author_sort Ajemian, Matthew J.
collection PubMed
description Artificial structures are the dominant complex marine habitat type along the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) shelf. These habitats can consist of a variety of materials, but in this region are primarily comprised of active and reefed oil and gas platforms. Despite being established for several decades, the fish communities inhabiting these structures remain poorly investigated. Between 2012 and 2013 we assessed fish communities at 15 sites using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). Fish assemblages were quantified from standing platforms and an array of artificial reef types (Liberty Ships and partially removed or toppled platforms) distributed over the Texas continental shelf. The depth gradient covered by the surveys (30–84 m) and variability in structure density and relief also permitted analyses of the effects of these characteristics on fish richness, diversity, and assemblage composition. ROVs captured a variety of species inhabiting these reefs from large transient piscivores to small herbivorous reef fishes. While structure type and relief were shown to influence species richness and community structure, major trends in species composition were largely explained by the bottom depth where these structures occurred. We observed a shift in fish communities and relatively high diversity at approximately 60 m bottom depth, confirming trends observed in previous studies of standing platforms. This depth was also correlated with some of the largest Red Snapper captured on supplementary vertical longline surveys. Our work indicates that managers of artificial reefing programs (e.g., Rigs-to-Reefs) in the GOM should carefully consider the ambient environmental conditions when designing reef sites. For the Texas continental shelf, reefing materials at a 50–60 m bottom depth can serve a dual purpose of enhancing diving experiences and providing the best potential habitat for relatively large Red Snapper.
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spelling pubmed-44254962015-05-21 An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs Ajemian, Matthew J. Wetz, Jennifer J. Shipley-Lozano, Brooke Shively, J. Dale Stunz, Gregory W. PLoS One Research Article Artificial structures are the dominant complex marine habitat type along the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) shelf. These habitats can consist of a variety of materials, but in this region are primarily comprised of active and reefed oil and gas platforms. Despite being established for several decades, the fish communities inhabiting these structures remain poorly investigated. Between 2012 and 2013 we assessed fish communities at 15 sites using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). Fish assemblages were quantified from standing platforms and an array of artificial reef types (Liberty Ships and partially removed or toppled platforms) distributed over the Texas continental shelf. The depth gradient covered by the surveys (30–84 m) and variability in structure density and relief also permitted analyses of the effects of these characteristics on fish richness, diversity, and assemblage composition. ROVs captured a variety of species inhabiting these reefs from large transient piscivores to small herbivorous reef fishes. While structure type and relief were shown to influence species richness and community structure, major trends in species composition were largely explained by the bottom depth where these structures occurred. We observed a shift in fish communities and relatively high diversity at approximately 60 m bottom depth, confirming trends observed in previous studies of standing platforms. This depth was also correlated with some of the largest Red Snapper captured on supplementary vertical longline surveys. Our work indicates that managers of artificial reefing programs (e.g., Rigs-to-Reefs) in the GOM should carefully consider the ambient environmental conditions when designing reef sites. For the Texas continental shelf, reefing materials at a 50–60 m bottom depth can serve a dual purpose of enhancing diving experiences and providing the best potential habitat for relatively large Red Snapper. Public Library of Science 2015-05-08 /pmc/articles/PMC4425496/ /pubmed/25954943 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0126354 Text en © 2015 Ajemian et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are properly credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Ajemian, Matthew J.
Wetz, Jennifer J.
Shipley-Lozano, Brooke
Shively, J. Dale
Stunz, Gregory W.
An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs
title An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs
title_full An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs
title_fullStr An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs
title_full_unstemmed An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs
title_short An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs
title_sort analysis of artificial reef fish community structure along the northwestern gulf of mexico shelf: potential impacts of “rigs-to-reefs” programs
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4425496/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25954943
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0126354
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