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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Stable Isotopes And Community Surveys Reveal Differential Use Of Artificial And Natural Reefs By South Florida Fishes, Christopher Blanar, Joseph R. Hornbeck, David Kerstetter, Amy Hirons
Stable Isotopes And Community Surveys Reveal Differential Use Of Artificial And Natural Reefs By South Florida Fishes, Christopher Blanar, Joseph R. Hornbeck, David Kerstetter, Amy Hirons
Biology Faculty Articles
Artificial reefs may enhance the biological production of reef-associated flora and fauna, but their trophic structure relative to that of natural reefs remains understudied. We assessed trophic relationships by 1) comparing reef fish communities and 2) comparing δ13C and δ15N in 43 fish species from both artificial reef sites and adjacent natural reef tracts in Broward County, Florida. We tested the effect of sampling location (artificial, first, and second reef), general feeding strategy (herbivore, omnivore, invertivore, and carnivore), phylogeny, and standard length on δ13C and δ15N. The reef fish communities of the artificial and natural reef tracts were significantly different; …