Composition, Abundance and Distribution of Fish Eggs in Sarawak Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of South China Sea

Fish eggs are categorised as ichthyoplankton and most pelagic eggs are distributed in or just below the photic zone. The study of the fish egg is crucial in understanding the dynamics of fish populations, but information on fish eggs in the Sarawak exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is still lacking. This study reports the fish eggs composition, abundance and distribution at 38 stations within three zones in the Sarawak EEZ. The eggs were sampled from 19 August to 6 October 2015 using a bongo net (330 μm and 500 μm mesh-size), obliquely towed at a speed of 2 to 3 knots for 20 min. Selected physicochemical water parameters were also collected according to depth profile. Preserved fish eggs were identified to the family level. Density and diversity of fish eggs were calculated. The influence of environmental factors on fish egg abundance according to zone was tested with canonical correspondence analyses (CCA). A total of 3,935 fish eggs belonging to 6 orders and 12 families were successfully collected whereby Carangidae, Clupeidae and Scombridae showed high abundance (>10 %). Highest mean density was recorded at inner neritic zone while the Jaccard’s dissimilarity index ranged from 0 % to 25 % among the three zones. Based on CCA, the abundance of Labridae, Malacostidae, Muraenidae, Scombridae and Sphyraenidae were influenced by environmental factors. The findings of this paper are useful for future fishery management in Sarawak EE