Nekton utilisation of intertidal estuarine marshes in the Knysna Estuary

Abstract

Between 14 July and 8 December 1998 two creeks in the intertidal estuarine marsh of the Knysna Estuary were block netted. Analysis of the nekton community showed that juvenile euryhaline marine fish species were dominant, and that invertebrate taxa (nektonic crustaceans) made up less than 0.1 % of the community by mass. Gut-content analysis carried out on the ichthyofauna showed that fish were feeding in the creeks, supporting the trophic relay model for the transfer of production off the vegetated marsh surfaces into subtidal habitats.