ABSTRACT
Spatial and temporal variation in resources exerts a strong influence on population processes in coral reef fishes. Seasonality in food resources will propagate through the food web, but they are likely to be most pronounced in the lower trophic levels, such as grazers. In the chapter ‘Phenological aspects of parrotfish ecology on coral reefs’ the effects of temporal changes in benthic algal communities on the nutritional ecology, habitat use and aspects of the life-history of parrotfishes are reviewed. Seasonality affects the availability of preferred high-yield food resources and parrotfishes can only partly compensate this by consuming less preferred food items. As a consequence, food intake varies seasonally, which in turn affects body condition, growth and reproductive activity. It is argued that in, order to maximize reproductive output, parrotfishes may defer reproductive activity to lean periods of the year. A better understanding of parrotfish phenology enables making predictions of their responses to climatic and human disturbances of coral reefs.
