HABITAT SELECTION AND RECRUITMENT OF AN ASSEMBLAGE OF TEMPERATE ZONE REEF FISHES

Spatial and temporal patterns of recruitment are described for young-of-year of nine species of rockfish (Scorpaenidae, genus Sebastes) in a giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera (L.) C.Ag. forest off central California, USA. Through all nine species recruited during or soon after the months of maximum coastal upwelling, variation in timing of peak recruitment among species corresponded to the sequential parturition of pelagic larvae. Recruits of each rockfish species exhibited strong and significantly distinct habitat selection based on substratum type and relief, algal type, and vertical position in the water column. To determine the effect of habitat structure on the distribution and abundance of recruits, observations of habitat selection were made within an unmanipulated M. pyrifera forest and compared to sites where the presence of M. pyrifera was altered. Whereas variation in substratum type can contribute to spatial patterns of rockfish recruitment, the temporal dynamics of algal abundance, especially M. pyrifera, may strongly influence temporal, as well as spatial variability of rockfish recruitment. These results indicate that the structural composition of a reef, particularly the occurrence of M. pyrifera, strongly influences the magnitude and species composition of local recruitment of this rockfish assemblage.