Abstract

Movements of five warm-temperate, sparid reef fishes were studied on South Africa’s Agulhas Bank by mark–recapture. A small proportion (7.4%) of recaptured Petrus rupestris had moved distances of 200–1000 km towards adult aggregations along the east coast. Movement patterns of non-migratory P. rupestris and the other four species were, in spite of scale differences, remarkably similar: most individuals (57–93%) did not move, with the remainder demonstrating displacements that were tiny when compared with distributional ranges. With the exception of Argyrozona argyrozona, which moved offshore with growth, movement was not related to fish size, sexual maturity or time at liberty. Travel range lengths (TRLs) – the radius containing 95% of displacements – were 21 km for Chemerius nufar, 13 km for Chrysoblephus laticeps, 7 km for Chrysoblephus gibbiceps, 14 km for non-migratory P. rupestris, and 15 km for inshore/juvenile and 49 km for offshore/adult A. argyrozona. A minimum reserve length of 45 km is estimated (based on the TRLs) for South Africa’s inshore warm-temperate reef ecosystem. Of the eight no-take reserves protecting this habitat, one is 64 km and the rest are between 3.5 and 25 km. There are no marine reserves protecting adult A. argyrozona and P. rupestris because these are largely found offshore of present reserve boundaries.