Over small spatial scales, coral reefs represent a mosaic of suitable settlement microhabitat patches of varying size for late-stage larval reef fishes. Few studies have specifically examined how variation in patch size influences density of recently settled coral reef fishes (recruits). Using standardized units of coral rubble settlement substrate deployed on sandy bottom, we monitored the concurrent settlement of three reef fish taxa onto differently sized patches (0.28–1.68 m 2 ) at 5-d intervals during a lunar settlement peak. We found marked differences among taxa in how recruit density scaled with patch size. Recruit density of a damselfish and a parrotfish decreased and increased, respectively, with the increase in patch size, while that of a wrasse was similar among patch sizes. Our results highlight the importance of the interaction between taxon-specific settlement behaviour and patch size in establishing initial spatial differences in density within and among coral reef fish taxa in a heterogeneous landscape.

中文翻译：

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微生境斑块大小对共生珊瑚礁鱼类沉降的影响不同

在小空间尺度上，珊瑚礁代表了适合晚期珊瑚礁幼体鱼的大小不等的聚落微生境斑块的马赛克。很少有研究专门研究斑块大小的变化如何影响最近定居的珊瑚礁鱼类（新鱼）的密度。使用部署在沙质底部的珊瑚碎石沉降基质的标准化单位，我们在月球沉降高峰期间以 5 天的间隔监测了三种珊瑚鱼类群同时沉降到不同大小的斑块（0.28-1.68 m 2 ）上。我们发现分类群之间在招募密度如何随补丁大小缩放方面存在显着差异。雀鲷和鹦嘴鱼的募集密度分别随着斑块大小的增加而减少和增加，而濑鱼的募集密度在斑块大小之间相似。