A Survey of the Order Tetraodontiformes on Coral Reef Habitats in Southeast Florida
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Nova Southeastern University NSUWorks HCNSO Student Capstones HCNSO Student Work 4-28-2020 A Survey of the Order Tetraodontiformes on Coral Reef Habitats in Southeast Florida Anne C. Sevon Nova Southeastern University, [email protected] This document is a product of extensive research conducted at the Nova Southeastern University . For more information on research and degree programs at the NSU , please click here. Follow this and additional works at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cnso_stucap Part of the Marine Biology Commons, and the Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons Share Feedback About This Item NSUWorks Citation Anne C. Sevon. 2020. A Survey of the Order Tetraodontiformes on Coral Reef Habitats in Southeast Florida. Capstone. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, . (350) https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cnso_stucap/350. This Capstone is brought to you by the HCNSO Student Work at NSUWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in HCNSO Student Capstones by an authorized administrator of NSUWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Capstone of Anne C. Sevon Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science M.S. Marine Environmental Sciences M.S. Coastal Zone Management Nova Southeastern University Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography April 2020 Approved: Capstone Committee Major Professor: Dr. Kirk Kilfoyle Committee Member: Dr. Bernhard Riegl This capstone is available at NSUWorks: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cnso_stucap/350 HALMOS COLLEGE OF NATURAL SCIENCES AND OCEANOGRAPHY A SURVEY OF THE ORDER TETRAODONTIFORMES ON CORAL REEF HABITATS IN SOUTHEAST FLORIDA By Anne C. Sevon Submitted to the Faculty of Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science with a specialty in: Marine Environmental Science and Coastal Zone Management Nova Southeastern University May 2020 3 Table of Contents List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... IV List of Tables ..............................................................................................................................VIII List of Appendices ......................................................................................................................VIII List of Acronyms ............................................................................................................................X Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... 11 Keywords .................................................................................................................................. 11 1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 12 1.1 Background ......................................................................................................................... 14 1.2 Statement of Purpose ........................................................................................................... 19 1.3 Selected Species .................................................................................................................. 19 1.4 Benthic Habitats .................................................................................................................. 35 1.5 Local Coral Reef Ecoregions .............................................................................................. 37 2.0 Hypotheses .............................................................................................................................. 40 3.0 Materials and Methods ............................................................................................................ 40 3.1 Study Area ........................................................................................................................... 41 3.2 Data Collection .................................................................................................................... 42 3.3 Data Entry ........................................................................................................................... 43 3.4 Survey Design ..................................................................................................................... 44 3.5 Statistical Analysis .............................................................................................................. 44 4.0 Results ..................................................................................................................................... 45 4.1 Mean Density in Benthic Habitats ...................................................................................... 46 4.2 Mean Density in Depth Categories ..................................................................................... 52 4.3 Mean Density in Ecoregions ............................................................................................... 55 5.0 Discussion ............................................................................................................................... 60 5.1 Benthic Habitats .................................................................................................................. 60 5.2 Depth ................................................................................................................................... 74 5.3 Ecoregions ........................................................................................................................... 81 6.0 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 98 6.1 Future research .................................................................................................................... 99 7.0 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................. 100 8.0 References ............................................................................................................................. 101 III 9.0 Appendices ............................................................................................................................ 108 List of Figures Figure 1. Mean percent occurrence for each species from Tetraodontiformes found within the 2012-2016 southeast Florida FIA dataset. .................................................................................... 22 Figure 2. A Gray Triggerfish with the spine slightly erect .......................................................... 24 Figure 3. Range of Gray Triggerfish ............................................................................................ 24 Figure 4. A Queen Triggerfish showing the distinct colors of the head and abdomen, the bright blue bands can be seen extending from the snout to below the pectoral fin while the lower band is located around the lips............................................................................................................... 25 Figure 5. Range of Queen Triggerfish ......................................................................................... 26 Figure 6. A Balloonfish showing the color pattern of large dark markings with smaller black spots in between ............................................................................................................................ 27 Figure 7. Range of Balloonfish .................................................................................................... 27 Figure 8. An adult Unicorn Filefish with the grayish to silver color with no markings .............. 28 Figure 9. Range of Unicorn Filefish ............................................................................................ 28 Figure 10. A Scrawled Filefish with the yellow body, blue lines, and black spots ..................... 29 Figure 11. Range of Scrawled Filefish......................................................................................... 30 Figure 12. An Orangespotted Filefish showing the yellow/orange stripes .................................. 31 Figure 13. Range of Orangespotted Filefish ................................................................................ 31 Figure 14. A Smooth Trunkfish with white spots and hexagonal plates ..................................... 32 Figure 15. Range of Smooth Trunkfish ....................................................................................... 32 Figure 16. Sharpnose Pufferfish with the pale yellow color on the side with bright blue spots .. 33 Figure 17. Range of Sharpnose Pufferfish ................................................................................... 34 Figure 18. A Bandtail Pufferfish with the row dark blotches from the mouth to the tail ............ 35 Figure 19. Range of Bandtail Pufferfish ...................................................................................... 35 Figure 20. Map of the five local coral reef ecoregions, including the habitat types, along the northern Florida Reef Tract .......................................................................................................... 39 IV Figure 21. Map of study area showing the local ecoregions ........................................................ 42 Figure 22.