Welcome to Chinese Journal of Ecology! Today is Share:

Chinese Journal of Ecology ›› 2023, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (7): 1755-1763.doi: 10.13292/j.1000-4890.202306.023

Previous Articles     Next Articles

Research progress and conservation suggestions of coral reef fishes in the Xisha Islands.

WANG Teng1,2, SHI Juan1, YU Yangfei3, ZHAO Jinfa1, XIAO Yayuan1, LIU Yong1,2*, LI Chunhou1* #br#

#br#
  

  1. (1South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences; Key Laboratory of South China Sea Fishery Resources Exploitation & Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Observation and Research Station of Pearl River Estuary Ecosystem, Guangdong Province, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Fishery Ecology and Environment, Guangzhou 510300, China; 2Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization and Processing of Marine Fishery Resources of Hainan Province/Sanya Tropical Fisheries Research Institute, Sanya 572018, Hainan, China; 3Sansha Marine Protected Area Administration, Sansha 573100, Hainan, China).

  • Online:2023-07-10 Published:2023-07-07

PDF (PC)

99

Abstract: Fish resources of Xisha Islands are extremely rich, which have declined significantly due to habitat degeneration and overfishing. In recent years, researches on Xisha coral reef fishes have increased exponentially, as a new research hot spot in marine fishes. Up to now, a total of 777 coral reef fish species have been found in Xisha, belonging to 2 classes, 26 orders, 101 families, and 308 genera. A total of 50 fish species had been listed in the IUCN Red List, of which 74% were cartilaginous fish. The proportion of large fish was as high as 92%, so priority should be given to protecting the large fish in the Xisha Islands, especially the cartilaginous fish. The fish communities of different coral reefs had obvious differences, which could be divided into two fish communities: Yongle Islands and Xuande Islands. There were also significant differences in fish species of different water depth, which could be divided into shallow-water fish communities below 5 m, medium-depth fish communities of 5-10 m, and deepwater fish communities above 10 m. Shallow water and medium-depth fish communities were dominated by small fish, whereas deep-water fish communities were dominated by medium and large fish. Fish resources of Xisha Island are estimated to be more than 20000 t, with the catchable resources exceeding 10000 t. From the perspective of temporal scale, the density of Xisha coral reef fish had significantly decreased in a fluctuating way, from a peak of 310 ind·100 m-2 in 2005 to 146.7 ind·100 m-2 in 2021. The dominant fish group type in Xisha coral reef fish community had changed from carnivorous fish to herbivorous fish. Furthermore, the reef-dependent fish disappeared, fish miniaturized, sexually mature individuals became smaller, and sex ratios changed significantly. Accordingly, we proposed the measures for the protection and management of coral reef fish, to achieve sustainable development of fishery resources in Xisha Islands.


Key words: Xisha Islands, islands and reefs, coral reef fisheries, overfishing, succession.