20.500.12556/DKUM-91071 Factors influencing habitat selection of three cryptobenthic clingfish species in the shallow North Adriatic Sea Cryptobenthic fishes were often overlooked in the past due to their cryptic lifestyle, so knowledge of their ecology is still incomplete. One of the most poorly studied taxa of fishes in the Mediterranean Sea is clingfish. In this paper we examine the habitat preferences of three clingfish species (Lepadogaster lepadogaster, L. candolii, and Apletodon incognitus) occurring in the Gulf of Trieste (Northern Adriatic). The results show that all three species have a cryptic lifestyle and are well-segregated based on their depth distribution and macro- and microhabitat preferences. L. lepadogaster inhabits shallow waters of the lower mediolittoral and upper infralittoral, where it occurs on rocky bottoms under stones. L. candolii similarly occurs in the rocky infralittoral under stones, but below the lower distribution limit of L. lepadogaster, and in seagrass meadows, where it occupies empty seashells. Such hiding places in seagrass meadows are also occupied by A. incognitus, which mostly occurs below the lower distribution limit of L. candolii. Despite the overlap of depth and macrohabitat, the probability of individuals of two species encountering each other or competing in the same habitat is low when the depth range is combined with the microhabitat preferences of these species. cryptobenthic fish clingfish habitat selection depth distribution Lepadogaster lepadogaster Lepadogaster candolii Apletodon incognitus kriptobentoške ribe Gobiesocidae izbira habitata globinska porazdelitev hidrobiologija severni Jadran ribe habitati true false true MDPI Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Znanstveno delo 2024-10-18 10:21:59 2024-10-18 10:46:11 2024-10-19 03:11:39 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2021 0 0 Str. 1-20 št. 8, št. članka 789 Letn. 9 2021 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 2021-06-15 2021-07-17 2021-07-22 574 71896579 10.3390/jmse9080789 2077-1312 Trkov-2021-Factors_Influencing_Habitat_Selecti.pdf Trkov-2021-Factors_Influencing_Habitat_Selecti.pdf 1 5C29B117608136062785197661390FDF d1d92d33077ad1c9536f6bb35dec3a3eec1f23f1e6f2bb62f388bbfadd77b4b5 49c5765c-8d2d-11ef-a8b7-00155d000105 https://dk.um.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=186650 https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9080789 0 0d79c65e-8d2a-11ef-a8b7-00155d000105 https://dk.um.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=186648 Fakulteta za naravoslovje in matematiko Filozofska fakulteta 0 0 0