¿Es posible determinar un grupo especial de peces por su hábitat?: breve discusión

Abstract

Coral reefs are a complex environment with a large biodiversity. Much research has been done to understand the diversity and ecology of coral reefs. Especially ichthyologists examined the relationship and interaction between the large numbers of fish species. In the last years, some authors tried to define coral reef fishes by means of taxonomy or ecology, but until today, there is no consent about a general definition of fishes on coral reefs. Most researchers only worked with teleost fishes in their studies. However, the history of fishes on shallow-water reefs is much older than the “teleost era”. Some typical extinct Mesozoic shallow-water fishes (Pycnodontiformes) are compared with extant coral reef fishes. The main result of this short discussion is that it is impossible to give a general definition of coral reef fishes. Shallow-water reef fishes are heterogenic in their lifestyle and have no closer taxonomic relationship in the course time.