parks victoria technical series marine natural values study vol 2 ...
parks victoria technical series marine natural values study vol 2 ...
parks victoria technical series marine natural values study vol 2 ...
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Parks Victoria Technical Series No. 79<br />
Flinders and Twofold Shelf Bioregions Marine Natural Values Study<br />
is not so abundant (Williams et al. 2007). Blue throat wrasse Notolabrus tetricus and purple<br />
wrasse Notolabrus fucicola are generally not very abundant at the MNP, more common is<br />
the Maori wrasse Opthalmolepis lineolate (Williams et al. 2007). The striped mado,<br />
damselfish species, eastern hulafish Trachinops taeniatus or yellow tail mackerel Trachurus<br />
novaezelandiae can be numerically dominate at individual sites (Williams et al. 2007). The<br />
damsel fishes, white ear Parma microlepis and the one-spot puller Chromis hypsilepis occur<br />
together predominantly in ‘urchin barrens’ (Williams et al. 2007). The plankton feeding<br />
striped mado is typically highly abundant on reefs in eastern Australia. Large long-finned<br />
pike Dinolestes lewini occurs widely on the shallow subtidal reefs of Cape Howe MNP<br />
(Williams et al. 2007).<br />
In waters > 10 m the velvet leatherjacket Meuschenia scaber and butterfly perch<br />
Caesioperca lepidoptera are common over both reef and sediment covered reef (Moore et<br />
al. 2008). Also associated with these habitats are white ear, Maori wrasse, six-spined<br />
leatherjacket Meuschenia freycineti and the blue morwong Nemadactylus douglasii (Moore<br />
et al. 2009). The eastern blue grouper Achoerodus viridis is strongly associated with solid<br />
reef and boulders (Moore et al. 2009). The green moray Gymnothorax prasinus is found only<br />
in reef with high topographic complexity as it needs the crevices and holes as refuges during<br />
the day (Moore et al. 2009).<br />
Water column<br />
The water column as a whole is the largest habitat in the MNP and is important in different<br />
ways for many organisms including for transit or as a permanent home for particular stages<br />
of their life cycle. Organisms that use the water column environment can be broadly grouped<br />
into two categories based on mode of movement: either pelagic (actively swimming) or<br />
planktonic (drifting with the current). Larger species are often planktonic during early life<br />
stages before becoming pelagic as they grow. Smaller species tend to be planktonic but can<br />
influence their movement to some extent by controlling their height in the water column.<br />
Organisms that make their permanent home in the water column include sea jellies, salps,<br />
many fish, and both phytoplankton and zooplankton. Planktonic organisms play an important<br />
role in nutrient cycling, dispersal of species and providing food for larger animals, both within<br />
the MNP and more broadly in the <strong>marine</strong> environment. The water column is also used by<br />
fish, invertebrates and algae for transport and food (and other resources like oxygen). Parks<br />
Victoria does not currently monitor the water column as a habitat (Power and Boxshall<br />
2007). As described in the following section a wide variety of seabirds, mammals and<br />
reptiles are found in the waters of Cape Howe MNP.<br />
Figure 35. Shell fragment dominated soft sediment and an erect sponge providing habitat for many<br />
invertebrates and fish in 105 m depth in Cape Howe Marine National Park, one of the deepest known<br />
parts of Victorian coastal waters.<br />
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