Fish communities

Research leaders:

Ian Potter

Research team:

Matt Pember, Michael Travers, David Fairclough and Fiona Valesini


Key research

  • Matt Pember, Ian Potter and Glen Young – Roles played by nearshore waters of the Pilbara/Kimberley coast in the life cycles of the most important commercial and recreational fish species found in that region.
  • Michael Travers, Ian Potter and Steve Newman (Dept of Fisheries WA) - Baseline data on the compositions of fish faunas in more offshore waters of the Pilbara Kimberley coast, including those over reef and soft substrates.
  • Fiona Valesini and Ian Potter- Fish communities in different habitat types of nearshore marine waters and estuaries.

Most recent related publications

Kanandjembo, A.N., Potter, I.C. and Platell, M.E. 2001. Abrupt shifts in the fish community of the hydrologically variable upper estuary of the Swan River. Hydrological Processes 15, 2503-2517.

Potter, I.C., Bird, D.J., Claridge, P.N., Clarke, K.R., Hyndes, G.A. and Newton, L.C. 2001. Fish fauna of the Severn Estuary. Are there long-term changes in abundance and species composition and are the recruitment patterns of the main marine species correlated? Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 258, 15-37.
Potter, I.C., Chalmer, P.N., Tiivel, D.J., Steckis, R.A., Platell, M.E. and Lenanton, R.C.J. 2000. The fish fauna and finfish fishery of the Leschenault Estuary in south-western Australia. Journal of the Royal Society of W.A. 83, 489-501.

Potter, I.C. and Hyndes, G.A. 1999. Characteristics of the ichthyofaunas of south-western Australian estuaries, including comparisons with holarctic estuaries and estuaries elsewhere in temperate Australia: A review. Australian Journal of Ecology 24, 395-421.

Thiel, R. and Potter, I.C. 2001. The ichthyofaunal composition of the Elbe Estuary: an analysis in space and time. Marine Biology 138, 603-616.
Travers, M.J. and Potter, I.C. 2002. Factors influencing the characteristics of fish assemblages in a large subtropical marine embayment. Journal of Fish Biology 61, 764 784.
Valesini, F., Potter, I.C. and Clarke, K.R. 2004. To what extent are the fish compositions at nearshore sites along a heterogeneous coast related to habitat type? Estuar. Cstl Shelf Sci. 60, 737-754.
Young, G.C. and Potter, I.C. 2002. Influence of exceptionally high salinities, marked variations in freshwater discharge and opening of estuary mouth on the characteristics of the ichthyofauna of a normally-closed estuary. Estuarine and Coastal Shelf Science 55, 223-246.
Young, G.C. and Potter I.C. 2003. Do the characteristics of the ichthyoplankton in an artificial and a natural entrance channel of a large estuary differ? Estuarine and Coastal Shelf Science 56, 765-779.
Young, G.C. and Potter I.C. 2003. Influence of an artificial entrance channel on the ichthyofauna of a large estuary. Marine Biology 142, 1181-1194.
Young, G.C. and Potter I.C. 2003. Induction of annual cyclical changes in the ichthyofauna of a large microtidal estuary following an artificial and permanent increase in tidal flow. Journal of Fish Biology 63, 1306-1330.