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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
Effects Of Community Structure On The Seagrass Thalassia Testudinum, Craig D. Rose, Clinton J. Dawes
Effects Of Community Structure On The Seagrass Thalassia Testudinum, Craig D. Rose, Clinton J. Dawes
Integrative Biology Faculty and Staff Publications
The influence of community structure on the seagrass Thalassia testudinum was studied in 3 distinct communities: low and high density monocultures, and patches intermixed with Halodule wrightii, in Cockroach Bay, Tampa, Florida. T. testudinum shoot-specific leaf mass and growth were significantly higher in low density monocultures, and both variables were negatively correlated with short-shoot density. Intraspecific, competition-density effects in high-density seagrass beds may be responsible for the relatively lower shoot-specific leaf mass and growth rates, possibly due to the reduction of available light from dense leaf canopies. These observations are supported by significantly higher T. testudinum leaf C:N and …
Comparative Resource Use By Juvenile Parrotfishes In The Florida Keys, Karen L. Overholtzer, Philip J. Motta
Comparative Resource Use By Juvenile Parrotfishes In The Florida Keys, Karen L. Overholtzer, Philip J. Motta
Integrative Biology Faculty and Staff Publications
Many parrotfishes (Scaridae) co-occur in mixed-species aggregations as juveniles, but diverge in resource use and social structure as adults. Focal observations of 3 juvenile parrotfishes (Scarus coeruleus, Sparisoma aurofrenatum, Sparisoma viride) were conducted on inshore patch reefs in the Florida Keys to examine feeding rates, food type, habitat use, and aggressive interactions. All species overlapped extensively in their use of space and food. Home ranges physically overlapped, and the proportion of microhabitats present within home ranges was similar for all species. Home range size increased with body size for S. coeruleus and S. aurofrenatum. Diets of all …