Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters

Population blooms of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical shallow water regions can fuel localized fisheries but also negatively impact human welfare. However, there is a lack of baseline ecological data regarding the scyphozoans in the region, which could be used to manage a fast-growing fishery and mi...

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Main Authors: Wan Mohd Syazwan, Amy Yee-Hui Then, Ving Ching Chong, Mohammed Rizman-Idid
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: PeerJ Inc. 2025-01-01
Series:PeerJ
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Online Access:https://peerj.com/articles/18483.pdf
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author Wan Mohd Syazwan
Amy Yee-Hui Then
Ving Ching Chong
Mohammed Rizman-Idid
author_facet Wan Mohd Syazwan
Amy Yee-Hui Then
Ving Ching Chong
Mohammed Rizman-Idid
author_sort Wan Mohd Syazwan
collection DOAJ
description Population blooms of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical shallow water regions can fuel localized fisheries but also negatively impact human welfare. However, there is a lack of baseline ecological data regarding the scyphozoans in the region, which could be used to manage a fast-growing fishery and mitigate potential impacts. Thus, this study aims to investigate the temporal factors driving the distribution of scyphozoan community along the environmental gradients under different monsoon seasons, rainfall periods, moon phases, and diel-tidal conditions in the Klang Strait located in the central region along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, where bloom events are increasing. Scyphozoan samples were collected using commercial bag nets during a 19-month survey. Temporal variations in species abundance and composition were evident and related to the local environmental parameters (salinity, dissolved oxygen, temperature, turbidity, and pH) that varied with the regional monsoon events, although these effects appeared to be species-specific. Phyllorhiza punctata, Acromitus flagellatus, Lychnorhiza malayensis, and Rhopilema esculentum were more abundant during the wetter northeast monsoon (NEM) while the abundance of Chrysaora chinensis and Lobonemoides robustus increased during the drier southwest monsoon (SWM). During the wet period of NEM, scyphozoan abundance was generally higher during the daytime than night-time. The regional monsoon regime and local hydrological events account for jellyfish abundance in the nearshore area with concurrent threats to coastal tourism and power plants, as well as benefits to fisheries especially during the NEM.
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spelling doaj-art-cd3b88cac0a74b9c9fa0729b1941ed1f2025-01-18T15:05:09ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592025-01-0113e1848310.7717/peerj.18483Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal watersWan Mohd Syazwan0Amy Yee-Hui Then1Ving Ching Chong2Mohammed Rizman-Idid3Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaInstitute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaInstitute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaInstitute of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaPopulation blooms of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical shallow water regions can fuel localized fisheries but also negatively impact human welfare. However, there is a lack of baseline ecological data regarding the scyphozoans in the region, which could be used to manage a fast-growing fishery and mitigate potential impacts. Thus, this study aims to investigate the temporal factors driving the distribution of scyphozoan community along the environmental gradients under different monsoon seasons, rainfall periods, moon phases, and diel-tidal conditions in the Klang Strait located in the central region along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, where bloom events are increasing. Scyphozoan samples were collected using commercial bag nets during a 19-month survey. Temporal variations in species abundance and composition were evident and related to the local environmental parameters (salinity, dissolved oxygen, temperature, turbidity, and pH) that varied with the regional monsoon events, although these effects appeared to be species-specific. Phyllorhiza punctata, Acromitus flagellatus, Lychnorhiza malayensis, and Rhopilema esculentum were more abundant during the wetter northeast monsoon (NEM) while the abundance of Chrysaora chinensis and Lobonemoides robustus increased during the drier southwest monsoon (SWM). During the wet period of NEM, scyphozoan abundance was generally higher during the daytime than night-time. The regional monsoon regime and local hydrological events account for jellyfish abundance in the nearshore area with concurrent threats to coastal tourism and power plants, as well as benefits to fisheries especially during the NEM.https://peerj.com/articles/18483.pdfPhysicochemicalAssemblageDielTideRainfallJellyfish
spellingShingle Wan Mohd Syazwan
Amy Yee-Hui Then
Ving Ching Chong
Mohammed Rizman-Idid
Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
PeerJ
Physicochemical
Assemblage
Diel
Tide
Rainfall
Jellyfish
title Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
title_full Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
title_fullStr Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
title_full_unstemmed Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
title_short Temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
title_sort temporal drivers of abundance and community structure of scyphozoan jellyfish in tropical coastal waters
topic Physicochemical
Assemblage
Diel
Tide
Rainfall
Jellyfish
url https://peerj.com/articles/18483.pdf
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AT amyyeehuithen temporaldriversofabundanceandcommunitystructureofscyphozoanjellyfishintropicalcoastalwaters
AT vingchingchong temporaldriversofabundanceandcommunitystructureofscyphozoanjellyfishintropicalcoastalwaters
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