Home range ecology of Naso unicornis (Bluespine Unicornfish): Use of acoustic telemetry to define foraging interactions with an invasive alga, Gracilaria salicornia, in a marine reserve

dc.contributor.author Bierwagen, Stacy Lynn
dc.date.accessioned 2016-02-24T02:40:45Z
dc.date.available 2016-02-24T02:40:45Z
dc.date.issued 2014
dc.description Thesis (M.S.)--University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, 2014.
dc.description.abstract Blooms of non-indigenous marine macroalgae have been reported throughout the Hawaiian Islands over the past 30 years. Successful invaders have dominated regions on both the Eastern and Western shores of Oahu. In Kaneohe Bay, a particular species of rhodophyte, Gracilaria salicornia , has successfully monopolized macroalgal communites throughout the Southern portion and is currently distributed to the most Northern regions of the bay. In a healthy reef community, herbivorous grazers play a large role in maintaining coral dominance by containing overgrowth of indigenous algae by grazing. Because of this known association, other studies have suggested that marine protected areas may carry the capacity to suppress overgrowth of successful invaders via promoting increased biomass of herbivorous reef fish. The interactions of Naso unicornis , bluespine unicornfish, with G. salicornia have never been addressed in a field capacity. By determining whether these fish select for habitats covered with G. salicornia and actively graze on the invasive macroalgae, we can determine whether or not this species-specific interaction exists. Recent studies also suggest that herbivorous reef fish contribute to the dispersal of some macroalgal species via gut passage. We used a combination of active tracking with underwater visual census to determine habitat selectivity and residence of N. unicornis in a marine protected area in Kaneohe Bay. After confirming that N. unicornis selects for and grazes G. salicornia , we collected the fecal fragments to determine regenerative capacity once passed through the gut. Using a pulse amplitude modulation fluorometer along with observation, we were able to determine fluorescence at different stages of growth post-egestion.
dc.format.extent 71
dc.identifier.citation Home range ecology of Naso unicornis (Bluespine Unicornfish): Use of acoustic telemetry to define foraging interactions with an invasive alga, Gracilaria salicornia, in a marine reserve Bierwagen, Stacy Lynn. University of Hawai'i at Hilo, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2014
dc.identifier.isbn 9781321473629
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/10790/2644
dc.language.iso en-US
dc.publisher Thesis (M.S.)--University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, 2014.
dc.subject Conservation
dc.subject Biological sciences
dc.subject Acoustic telemetry
dc.subject Gracilaria salicornia
dc.subject Invasive algae
dc.subject Naso unicornis
dc.subject.lcsh Naso unicornis
dc.title Home range ecology of Naso unicornis (Bluespine Unicornfish): Use of acoustic telemetry to define foraging interactions with an invasive alga, Gracilaria salicornia, in a marine reserve
dc.type Thesis
dc.type.dcmi Text
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