Occurrence and Variety of Fishes in Mixohaline Ponds of the Kona, Hawaii, Coast
Brock RE. 1977. Occurrence and Variety of Fishes in Mixohaline Ponds of the Kona, Hawaii, Coast. Copeia. 1977(1):134-139
The fish fauna of the Hawaiian coastal pond ecosystem situated pri- marily in recent (historical) lava flows is described. Forty-seven ponds of the 198 surveyed contained fishes and are categorized in five classes that are distinguished by differences in human use and degree of isolation from the sea. Ponds range from a few square meters to several hectares in size. Class 1 and 2 ponds are surface-connected to the sea and those of Classes 3, 4 and 5 are not, lying at varying distances up to 100 m inland. Ponds of Classes 1 and 5 are currently stocked by man, but those of the other three classes are not. The majority of the 37 fish species encountered are marine and several have not been reported previously from mixohaline waters. Biologically, the mixohaline pond system is much less diverse than adjacent nearshore marine communities. It is suggested that marine fish species in the pond habitat are generalists in their food habits. Three methods of pond colonization by marine fishes are proposed: fishes may actively swim up pond effluent currents; fishes may be transported to ponds by waves during periods of storms; or juveniles of some edible species may be intentionally introduced by man.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Brock, Richard
- Units
- ALKA , KAHO , PUHE
- Keywords
- Anchialine Pools, Animal Studies, Aquatic Science, Big Island, Fish, Fisheries Management, Hawaii, Kona, mixohaline ponds