Small distances, great differences: a case study involving the biomass of reef seaweeds and fishes on the coast of Paraíba, Northeast Brazil

Shallow reefs on the coast of Paraíba state are poorly known. An analysis at three stations (Prot = protected; SP = semi-protected; Exp = exposed) with different gradients of wave exposure revealed significant (p < 0.05) differences related to the biomass of seaweed (Prot = SP ≠ Exp). Station Exp with 9.97g (23%) presented the lowest value followed by SP with 10.93 (25%) and Prot with 22.55g (52%). The values suggest that the biomass of seaweeds is inversely related to the gradative higher exposure to waves. Additionally, a first record of Wrangelia argus (Montagne) Montagne was made for the coast of Paraíba

Effects of tourist visitation and supplementary feeding on fish assemblage composition on a tropical reef in the Southwestern Atlantic

The effects of tourist visitation and food provisioning on fish assemblages were assessed by visual censuses (stationary technique) carried out in a tropical reef in Northeastern Brazil. Comparisons of species abundance, richness, equitability, and trophic structure in the presence (PT) and absence (AT) of tourists suggest that tourist visitation and supplementary food influenced the structure of the fish assemblage, as follows: (a) diversity, equitability and species richness were significantly higher on the AT period, while the abundance of a particular species was significantly higher during PT; (b) trophic structure differed between the AT and PT periods, omnivores being more abundant during the latter period, while mobile invertivores, piscivores, roving herbivores and territorial herbivores were significantly more abundant on AT. Reef tourism is increasingly being regarded as an alternative to generate income for human coastal communities in the tropics. Therefore, closer examination of the consequences of the various components of this activity to reef system is a necessary step to assist conservation and management initiatives