Seasonal cycle of a Cymodocea nodosa seagrass meadow and of the associated ichthyofauna at Playa Dorada (Lanzarote, Canary Islands, eastern Atlantic)

The seasonal cycle of a mixed seagrass meadow of Cymodocea nodosa and Caulerpa prolifiera and of the associated ichthyofauna was studied at Playa Dorada (Lanzarote, Canary Islands, eastern Atlantic) from March 2001 to April 2002. A seasonal (bimodal) cycle was clearly observed, with maximum values in spring and summer (April-September) and minimum in winter (December-March). Shoot densities oscillated between 372 and 1014 shoots m(-2), the biomass of Cymodocea nodosa between 94 and 271 g DW m(-2), total vegetal biomass between 94 and 383 g DW m(-2) and mean leaf lengths between 10 and 18 cm. Mean fish richness fluctuated between 0.7 and 5.3 species and total fish densities between 2.0 and 144.0 ind 100 m(-2). There was a clear correlation between the cycles of C nodosa and the associated fish population.