Variation of the Fish Community Associated with Soft Bottoms in a Coastal Lagoon on the Pacific Side of B.C.S, México

Abstract

The San Ignacio lagoon is located inside the "Biosphere reserve El Vizcaino". The study of fish within coastal lagoon systems allows a better understanding of how these organisms are responsible for performing various activities that are necessary for the stability of the ecosystem. There is very general and outdated research of the ichthyofauna in the San Ignacio lagoon. In the present study, the structure of the fish community associated with soft bottoms and the ecological role of the most dominant species was analyzed. Six bimonthly samplings were carried out in 11 localities from April 2013 to April 2014 resulting in 66 replicates, each time an experimental trawl net was used to capture the organisms and physicochemical parameters were recorded. 2,887 organisms belonging to 26 families, 38 genera and 46 species were captured. There were significant differences in seasonal richness but not spatial richness, and there were no significant differences in diversity or evenness. According to the BVI, 12 species were the most biologically important.