Baited remote underwater video as a promising nondestructive tool to assess fish assemblages in clearwater Amazonian rivers: testing the effect of bait and habitat type

Baited remote underwater video (BRUV) systems are being used in marine ecosystems as a nonextractive, cost-effective method of assessing the fish fauna with minimal species bias. This technique has had limited applications in freshwater ecosystems. Rheophilic fish assemblages of the Xingu River, a clearwater Amazonian river in Northern Brazil, were sampled with BRUV systems. Two-hour video recordings were collected using five different bait treatments (sardine, croaker, cat food, sweet corn, and no bait) in two lotic habitat categories (rocky and sandy bottoms). A total of 2460 fish from 56 taxa and 13 families were recorded from the 80 BRUV deployments. Significantly different fish assemblages, species richness, and abundance were detected between habitat types and among treatments. Our results suggest that the use of crushed sardines as a standardized bait optimizes the sampling recording the highest species richness, relative abundance, and number of exclusive species of rheophilic fish in clearwater Amazonian rivers. The data also highlight the unique fish diversity of the Xingu River prior to the expected large-scale environmental degradation resulting from the forthcoming operation of the Belo Monte hydroelectric power plant.

[1]  B. Forsberg,et al.  Factors influencing the structure and spatial distribution of fishes in the headwater streams of the Jaú River in the Brazilian Amazon. , 2014, Brazilian journal of biology = Revista brasleira de biologia.

[2]  Steven J. Cooke,et al.  Action Cameras: Bringing Aquatic and Fisheries Research into View , 2015 .

[3]  M. Kennard,et al.  Filming and snorkelling as visual techniques to survey fauna in difficult to access tropical rainforest streams , 2015 .

[4]  A. Remppis,et al.  Physician and Patient Predictors of Evidence-Based Prescribing in Heart Failure: A Multilevel Study , 2012, PloS one.

[5]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Diversity and Composition of Demersal Fishes along a Depth Gradient Assessed by Baited Remote Underwater Stereo-Video , 2012, PloS one.

[6]  M. Zalewski,et al.  The importance of floodplains for the dynamics of fish communities of the upper river Paraná , 2001 .

[7]  J. Lundberg,et al.  Balancing hydropower and biodiversity in the Amazon, Congo, and Mekong , 2016, Science.

[8]  Marti J. Anderson,et al.  A comparison of temperate reef fish assemblages recorded by three underwater stereo-video techniques , 2005 .

[9]  N. Andrew,et al.  Sampling and the description of spatial pattern in marine ecology , 1987 .

[10]  M. Quist,et al.  Fish Assemblage Structure and Habitat Associations in a Large Western River System , 2016 .

[11]  M. Kluge.  Ecological Studies In Tropical Fish Communities , 2016 .

[12]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Development and validation of a mid-water baited stereo-video technique for investigating pelagic fish assemblages , 2014 .

[13]  T. Giarrizzo,et al.  Length–weight and length–length relationships for 135 fish species from the Xingu River (Amazon Basin, Brazil) , 2015 .

[14]  Gary A. Kendrick,et al.  Coastal Fish Assemblages Reflect Geological and Oceanographic Gradients Within An Australian Zootone , 2013, PloS one.

[15]  R. J. Davidson,et al.  Evaluation and optimisation of underwater visual census monitoring for quantifying change in rocky-reef fish abundance , 2015 .

[16]  E. Harvey,et al.  Bait attraction affects the performance of remote underwater video stations in assessment of demersal fish community structure , 2007 .

[17]  K. Winemiller,et al.  Habitat structural complexity and morphological diversity of fish assemblages in a Neotropical floodplain river , 2004, Oecologia.

[18]  Matthew D. Campbell,et al.  Comparison of relative abundance indices calculated from two methods of generating video count data , 2015 .

[19]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Calibration of pelagic stereo‐BRUVs and scientific longline surveys for sampling sharks , 2014 .

[20]  Michael B. Lowry,et al.  Comparison of baited remote underwater video (BRUV) and underwater visual census (UVC) for assessment of artificial reefs in estuaries , 2012 .

[21]  J. Wraith.  Assessing reef fish assemblages in a temperate marine park using baited remote underwater video , 2007 .

[22]  B. Ebner,et al.  Using remote underwater video to estimate freshwater fish species richness. , 2013, Journal of fish biology.

[23]  Mark Sabaj Perez,et al.  Where the Xingu Bends and Will Soon Break , 2015 .

[24]  Tim P. Lynch,et al.  Pelagic fish assemblages assessed using mid-water baited video: standardising fish counts using bait plume size , 2007 .

[25]  Dominique Pelletier,et al.  Underwater video techniques for observing coastal marine biodiversity: A review of sixty years of publications (1952–2012) , 2014 .

[26]  S. Bortone,et al.  Quantification of Reef Fish Assemblages: A Comparison of Several In Situ Methods , 1986 .

[27]  Hannah M Murphy,et al.  Observational methods used in marine spatial monitoring of fishes and associated habitats: a review , 2010 .

[28]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Silent fish surveys: bubble‐free diving highlights inaccuracies associated with SCUBA‐based surveys in heavily fished areas , 2014 .

[29]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Contrasting habitat use of diurnal and nocturnal fish assemblages in temperate Western Australia , 2012 .

[31]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Potential of video techniques to monitor diversity, abundance and size of fish in studies of Marine Protected Areas , 2003 .

[32]  G. De’ath,et al.  Comparison of baited remote underwater video stations (BRUVS) and prawn (shrimp) trawls for assessments of fish biodiversity in inter-reefal areas of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park , 2004 .

[33]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  A comparison of visual‐ and stereo‐video based fish community assessment methods in tropical and temperate marine waters of Western Australia , 2013 .

[34]  D. Bucher,et al.  Effects of Reef Proximity on the Structure of Fish Assemblages of Unconsolidated Substrata , 2012, PloS one.

[35]  Marília Cunha Botelho,et al.  ABUNDÂNCIA DE PEIXES CHARACIFORMES DO MÉDIO RIO XINGU, COMO INDICADOR DO RITMO DE ATIVIDADE DIÁRIA EM AMBIENTES DE LAGOS MARGINAIS , 2010 .

[36]  Naércio A. Menezes,et al.  Estado atual da sistemática dos peixes de água doce da América do Sul , 1978 .

[37]  K. R. Clarke,et al.  Change in marine communities : an approach to statistical analysis and interpretation , 2001 .

[38]  M. Coleman,et al.  Optimisation of baited remote underwater video sampling designs for estuarine fish assemblages , 2012 .

[39]  M. Cetra,et al.  Trophic organization and fish assemblage structure as disturbance indicators in headwater streams of lower Sorocaba River basin, São Paulo, Brazil , 2013 .

[40]  Marti J. Anderson,et al.  Permutation tests for univariate or multivariate analysis of variance and regression , 2001 .

[41]  Gary A. Kendrick,et al.  A comparison of underwater visual distance estimates made by scuba divers and a stereo-video system: implications for underwater visual census of reef fish abundance , 2004 .

[42]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  A Comparison of the Accuracy and Precision of Measurements from Single and Stereo-Video Systems , 2002 .

[43]  W. Junk,et al.  Freshwater fishes of the Amazon River basin: their biodiversity, fisheries, and habitats , 2007 .

[44]  Nathan M. Bacheler,et al.  Examining the utility of alternative video monitoring metrics for indexing reef fish abundance , 2014 .

[45]  Marti J. Anderson,et al.  Measures of precision for dissimilarity-based multivariate analysis of ecological communities , 2014, Ecology letters.

[46]  T. Lynch,et al.  Bait type affects fish assemblages and feeding guilds observed at baited remote underwater video stations , 2013 .

[47]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  A little bait goes a long way: The influence of bait quantity on a temperate fish assemblage sampled using stereo-BRUVs , 2013 .

[48]  G. Shedrawi,et al.  Cost-efficient sampling of fish assemblages: comparison of baited video stations and diver video transects , 2010 .

[49]  Dominique Pelletier,et al.  Comparison of visual census and high definition video transects for monitoring coral reef fish assemblages , 2011 .

[50]  R Core Team,et al.  R: A language and environment for statistical computing. , 2014 .

[51]  B. Luckhurst,et al.  Analysis of the influence of substrate variables on coral reef fish communities , 1978 .

[52]  Benjamin J. Saunders,et al.  Fine‐scale patterns in the day, night and crepuscular composition of a temperate reef fish assemblage , 2016 .

[53]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Using artificial illumination to survey nocturnal reef fish , 2013 .

[54]  T. Giarrizzo,et al.  Effect of waterfalls and the flood pulse on the structure of fish assemblages of the middle Xingu River in the eastern Amazon basin. , 2015, Brazilian journal of biology = Revista brasleira de biologia.

[55]  Michael Cappo,et al.  Evaluation of sampling methods for reef fish populations of commercial, recreational interest. CRC Reef Research Technical report No. 6 , 1996 .

[56]  Raymond N. Gorley,et al.  PERMANOVA+ for PRIMER. Guide to software and statistical methods , 2008 .

[57]  Uft Rua.  Dams and the fish fauna of the Neotropical region: impacts and management related to diversity and fisheries , 2008 .

[58]  R. Babcock,et al.  A baited underwater video system for the determination of relative density of carnivorous reef fish , 2000 .

[59]  G. Kokkoris,et al.  Effects of habitat and substrate complexity on shallow sublittoral fish assemblages in the Cyclades Archipelago, North-eastern Mediterranean Sea , 2013 .

[60]  E. Harvey,et al.  Habitat Specialization in Tropical Continental Shelf Demersal Fish Assemblages , 2012, PloS one.

[61]  T. Giarrizzo,et al.  REVIEW OF THE GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF FISH FAUNA OF THE XINGU RIVER BASIN, BRAZIL , 2005 .

[62]  Euan S. Harvey,et al.  Bait Effects in Sampling Coral Reef Fish Assemblages with Stereo-BRUVs , 2012, PloS one.

[63]  M. Shortis,et al.  Estimation of reef fish length by divers and by stereo-video A first comparison of the accuracy and precision in the field on living fish under operational conditions , 2002 .

[64]  C. Grohmann,et al.  The Volta Grande do Xingu: reconstruction of past environments and forecasting of future scenarios of a unique Amazonian fluvial landscape , 2015 .

[65]  J. Zuanon,et al.  Historia natural da ictiofauna de corredeiras do Rio Xingu, na região de Altamira, Para , 1999 .

[66]  M. Chapman,et al.  A method for analysing spatial scales of variation in composition of assemblages , 1998, Oecologia.

[67]  M. Petrere,et al.  Life Strategies of some Long-Distance Migratory Catfish in Relation to Hydroelectric Dams in the Amazon Basin , 1991 .

[68]  H. Sioli,et al.  The Amazon : limnology and landscape ecology of a mighty tropical river and its basin , 1984 .

[69]  Underwood,et al.  Observations in ecology: you can't make progress on processes without understanding the patterns. , 2000, Journal of experimental marine biology and ecology.

[70]  A. Fonseca,et al.  Effects of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii strains (Woloszynska, 1912) Senayya & Subba Raju on the mobility of Daphnia laevis (Cladocera, Daphniidae). , 2014, Brazilian journal of biology = Revista brasleira de biologia.