Species richness in North Atlantic fish: process concealed by pattern

Aim Previous analyses of marine fish species richness based on presence-absence data have shown changes with latitude and average species size, but little is known about the underlying processes. To elucidate these processes we use metabolic, neutral, and descriptive statistical models to analyse how richness responds to maximum species length, fish abundance, temperature, primary production, depth, latitude, and longitude, while accounting for differences in species catchability, sampling effort, and mesh size.

Data Results from 53,382 bottom trawl hauls representing 50 fish assemblages.

Location The northern Atlantic from Nova Scotia to Guinea, the Mediterranean, the Arctic Sea.

Time period 1977-2013

Methods A descriptive Generalised Additive Model was used to identify functional relationships between species richness and potential drivers, after which non-linear estimation techniques were used to parameterize: 1) a ‘best’ fitting model of species richness built on the fun...