Wann-Nian Tzeng, Yu-Tzu Wang and Yarng Tzung Chern (1997) Species comp osition and distribution of fish larvae in Yenliao Bay, northeastern Taiwan. Zoological Studies 36(2): 146-158. Fish larvae were col-lected monthly in Yenliao Bay in northeastern Taiwan, using a Maruchi larval net at 11 stations from October 1992 to September 1993. A total of 9 969 larval fish representing 80 families and 138 species were collected. The larval fish assemblages included coral-reef, estuarine, and coastal pelagic species. Pomacentridae were the most abundant, making up 23% of the total catch, followed by Apogonidae (15%), Ambassis sp. (9%), Auxis sp. (9%), Gobiidae (6%), Carangidae (6%), Myctophidae (4%),Tripterygiidae (3%), Engraulis japonicus (3%), Priacanthus macracanthus (2%), and Sebastiscus marmoratus (2%). These 11 species groups constituted approximately 82% of the total collection. The abundance and number of species
of fish larvae increased with temperature and reached a peak in May. Larvae were more abundant in the nearshore than the offshore stations. Pelagic fish (e.g., E japonicus) spawned in offshore waters, and their larvae migrated to nearshore
waters. The distribution of fish larvae in nearshore waters was independent of the distribution of plankton. The high species diversity reflects the complicated geomorphology and hy-drography of the embayment environment. The mismatch in the distributions of peak abundance between fish larvae and zooplankton, and the relationship between the timing of occurrence and life hist ory transition of fish larvae are discussed.
