| A comparative study was conducted in two zones of the Northern Province of New Caledonia, one located windward (east coast) and the other located leeward (west coast). In each zone, three major sectors were investigated: fringing reefs close to areas of important mining activities, fringing reefs close to areas of moderate mining activities, and fringing reefs close to areas free of mining activities. In addition, on the west coast, fringing reefs close to areas of high natural ground erosion were also studied. Only commercial fish species sensus late were censused on a total of 163 stations, concerning 165 fish species. Substrate characteristics were not different between zones and sectors. However, significant differences were observed for living... |
