Density and Biomass of the Ichthyofauna of a Natal Littoral Reef

Visual censusing methods were employed over 2 consecutive years to estimate density and biomass of the ichthyofauna on a rocky littoral reef.A total of 66 teleost and 2 elasmobranch species was recorded of which 10 accounted for over 98 % of the total mean dry biomass of 15.1 g m-'.The only truly resident species were Scartella cristata and Pictiblennius cornutus which together comprised more than two thirds of the total biomass.Besides the blennies.Sarpa salpa was most important in terms of mean biomass (1.1 g m-2) and Pornadasys olivaceum in terms of mean density (0.9 m-2) Carnivores far outnumbered both herbivores and omnivores but the latter predominated in terms of biomass.It is concluded that shallow reefs on the east coast of South Africa, such as the one studied, represent an important source of concentrated food production to inshore teleosts.Caloric values are given for 18 teleost species.