Seasonal and spatial variations in fish and macrocrustacean assemblage structure in Mad Island Marsh estuary, Texas

Fish and macrocrustacean assemblage structure was analyzed along an estuarine gradient at Mad Island Marsh (MIM), Matagorda Bay, TX, during March 1998–August 1999. Eight estuarine-dependent fish species accounted for 94% of the individual fishes collected, and three species accounted for 96% of macrocrustacean abundance. Consistent with evidence from other Gulf of Mexico estuarine studies, species richness and abundance were highest during late spring and summer, and lowest during winter and early spring. Sites near the bay supported the most individuals and species. Associations between fish abundance and environmental variables were examined with canonical correspondence analysis. The dominant gradient was associated with water depth and distance from the bay. The secondary gradient reflected seasonal variation and was associated with temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and vegetation cover. At the scales examined, estuarine biota responded to seasonal variation more than spatial variation. Estuarine-dependent species dominated the fauna and were common throughout the open waters of the shallow lake during winter– early spring when water temperature and salinity were low and dissolved oxygen high. During summer–early fall, sub-optimal environmental conditions (high temperature, low DO) in upper reaches accounted for strong spatial variation in assemblage composition. Small estuarine-resident fishes and the blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) were common in warm, shallow, vegetated inland sites during summer–fall. Estuarine-dependent species were common at deeper, more saline locations near the bay during this period. During summer, freshwater species, such as gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum) and gars (Lepisosteus spp.), were positively associated with water depth and proximity to the bay. The distribution and abundance of fishes in MIM appear to result from the combined effects of endogenous, seasonal patterns of reproduction and migration operating on large spatial scales, and speciesspecific response to local environmental variation.