Surf zone fishes in an exposed sandy beach at Sanrimatsubara, Japan: Does fish assemblage structure differ among microhabitats?

To assess differences in fish assemblage structures among microhabitats within the surf zone of an exposed sandy beach, three microhabitats (onshore current, rip current, and river adjacent sites) were sampled at Sanrimatsubara Beach, western Japan, in May, August, and November 2002 and 2003. Although several physical variables (e.g. wave height, current speed, turbidity, salinity, and sand particle size) and major prey abundances (calanoid copepods and mysids) differed among the sites, no significant differences were apparent in the numbers of fish species and individuals among the sites in any month in either year. In addition, species and individual numbers of two dominant feeding groups (zooplankton feeders, and epiphytic and benthic crustacean feeders) did not show any significant responses to among-site differences in prey abundance. Cluster and ordination analysis confirmed the similarity in fish species composition among the three sites. These results indicated that the surf zone fish assemblage structures were similar among the microhabitats in spite of there being microhabitat-related differences in abiotic and biotic environments.