Patterns in fish biodiversity associated with temperate reefs on the southeastern US continental shelf Marine Biodiversity

Temperate reef fishes provide many benefits to humans including food, sport, and ecotourism, yet remain severely understudied compared to coral reef fishes in tropical environments. We used 3 years of underwater video data ( n=4 1 3 0 s a m p l e s ) f r o m hardbottom reefs along the continental shelf of the southeastern US Atlantic coast (i.e., North Carolina to Florida; ~ 100,000 km2) to quantify the spatial and temporal patterns of temperate reef fish biodiversity in the region. Overall, 210 taxa were identified on video from 53 families, 138 of which could be identified to the species level. Species with the highest percent occurrence were gray triggerfish ( Balistes capriscus ; observed on 45.6% of all videos), tomtate ( Haemulon aurolineatum ; 42.7%), and red porgy