[en] The richness of Taiwanese reef fish species is inversely correlated to latitude as a direct
consequence of the abiotic environment and its effects on benthic habitats.
However, to date, no studies have investigated the variations in the diversity of traits
(FD) linked with the role of these fishes in the ecosystem. FD is usually considered
more sensitive than species richness in detecting early changes in response to disturbances,
and therefore could serve as an indicator of ecological resilience to environmental
changes. Here, we aim to characterize FD in the Taiwanese reef fish fauna and
to document its regional variations. Six traits were used to categorize the 1,484 reef
fish species occurring in four environmentally contrasted regions around Taiwan. The
number of unique trait combinations (FEs), their richness (FRic), their redundancy (FR),
their over‐redundancy (FOR), and their vulnerability (FV) were compared among
these regions. Overall, 416 FEs were identified. Their number decreased from south
to north in step with regional species richness but FRic remained similar among regions.
FR and FOR were higher to the south. At the local scale, variations in FEs and
FRic are in concordance with the worldwide pattern of FD. High‐latitude, impoverished
fish assemblages, offer a range of trait combinations similar to diversified tropical
assemblages. Increasing diversity in the latter mainly contributes to raising FR and
supports already over‐redundant entities. High vulnerability makes many combinations
highly sensitive to species loss, and was higher at intermediate latitudes when
using a fine resolution in trait categories. It suggests that the loss of FEs may first be
characterized by an increase in their vulnerability, a pattern that could have been
overlooked in previous global scale analyses. Overall, this study provides new insights
into reef fish trait biogeography with potential ramifications for ecosystem
functioning.
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