Do cleaning stations affect the distribution of territorial reef fishes?
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| Authors: | Whiteman, EA; Côté, IM; Reynolds, JD |
| Year: | 2002 |
| Journal: | Coral Reefs 21: 245-251 |
| Title: | Do cleaning stations affect the distribution of territorial reef fishes? |
| Abstract: | We investigated the role of cleaning stations in determining the distribution of territorial reef species. Cleaner fish reduce their clients' ectoparasite loads and, therefore, proximity to cleaning stations should be advantageous for territorial fish. We focused on five damselfish species which hold permanent territories and cleaning stations occupied by cleaning gobies (Elacatinus spp.) on a Caribbean reef. Contrary to our predictions of higher densities near cleaning stations, we found that bicolor damselfish were less abundant near cleaning stations than at ecologically similar points without cleaning gobies whereas no effects were seen for longfin, dusky, yellowtail, and threespot damselfish. In addition, although damselfish densities were higher in the immediate vicinity of cleaning stations than 1.5-3 in away for most species, this was also the case at points without cleaners. Because cleaning stations are usually located on prominent coral heads or sponges, the overall significant attraction of damselfish to such structures, whether occupied by cleaning gobies or not, could reflect attraction to past or potential cleaning stations. However, it is more likely that interspecific competition and/or the low benefits of being cleaned at our study site prevent aggregation around cleaners. Cleaning stations may play only a minor rote in determining the distribution of territorial reef fishes. |
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