Lilliputian bottom fish fauna of the Hatteras upper middle continental slope
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文摘
Observations along the Carolina-Virginia continental slope reveal a Hatteras upper middle slope (HMS) demersal fish fauna remarkable for diminutive size of individuals within and across species, a fauna which is accordingly termed ‘Lilliputian’. Also peculiar to the HMS is the dominance of sedentary benthic species, rarity of active benthopelagic foragers, and markedly elevated fish population density. Species composition of the HMS fauna differs from that of the general Middle Atlantic Bight fauna; notably absent are species of otherwise continuous distribution along the U.S. East Coast (e.g. Synaphobranchus affinis, Nezumia aequalis).