Comparative evaluation of fish community diversity and stability in the Zhanjiang mangrove watershed using environmental DNA and centipede net sampling

Wenxiao SU; Xiaoyan LU; Zeyu LIN; Zhenyu WANG; Yiyuan LIN; Jianxiang FENG

doi:10.1007/s00343-026-5439-3

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Comparative evaluation of fish community diversity and stability in the Zhanjiang mangrove watershed using environmental DNA and centipede net sampling

Updated：2026-07-13

- Comparative evaluation of fish community diversity and stability in the Zhanjiang mangrove watershed using environmental DNA and centipede net sampling
- Journal of Oceanology and Limnology Pages: 1-23(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  1.School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Zhuhai 519080, China
  2.National Engineering Research Center for South China Sea Marine Biotechnology, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhuhai 519080, China
- Author bio：
  
  fengjx23@mail.sysu.edu.cn
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1007/s00343-026-5439-3
  CLC：
- Received：08 November 2025，
  
  Accepted：08 January 2026，
  
  Online First：09 February 2026，
- Accepted：
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SU Wenxiao,LU Xiaoyan,LIN Zeyu,et al.Comparative evaluation of fish community diversity and stability in the Zhanjiang mangrove watershed using environmental DNA and centipede net sampling[J].Journal of Oceanology and Limnology,
DOI：

SU Wenxiao,LU Xiaoyan,LIN Zeyu,et al.Comparative evaluation of fish community diversity and stability in the Zhanjiang mangrove watershed using environmental DNA and centipede net sampling[J].Journal of Oceanology and Limnology, DOI：10.1007/s00343-026-5439-3.

摘要

Abstract

Coastal and estuarine wetlands support high biodiversity and provide essential ecosystem services. As flagship blue-carbon ecosystems

mangroves and adjacent tidal flats store disproportionate carbon

making robust biodiversity monitoring foundational to blue-carbon conservation and management

However

the challenges associated with conventional fish surveys limit effective management. In this study

environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding and centipede sampling were conducted at four stations within the Zhanjiang Gaoqiao mangrove-mudflat system to compare their performance in assessing community composition

co-occurrence structure

and network stability. Using both methods

102 species (80 genera

46 families) were identified. PERMANOVA and PCoA analyses indicated that species composition differed significantly between methods (

0.01)

while the mean detection rates did not differ (

0.05). Species accumulation and rarefaction-extrapolation curves showed that sampling sufficiency had nearly reached saturation for both methods. In the co-occurrence networks

the key species were

Glossogobius

giuris

in the centipede net network and

Periophthalmus

modestus

in the eDNA network. The eDNA network was substantially larger

comprising 188 significant pairs compared to 16 in the centipede net network. Habitat weighting of key species differed by method: the eDNA dataset was more enriched in benthopelagic and pelagic-neritic guilds and had higher weights in estuary/brackish

coastal/nearshore

and freshwater categories. In contrast

the centipede net dataset was more demersal

targeting sandy/muddy bottoms and mangrove habitats. Stability analyses revealed higher robustness

lower vulnerability

and greater positive and negative cohesion for the eDNA network (

0.001)

indicating stronger signals of coordination and turnover. Overall

eDNA metabarcoding and centipede net sampling provided complementary insights into species composition

network structure

and stability

offering a more comprehensive understanding of fish diversity. These results establish a blue-carbon-relevant biodiversity baseline for a typical estuarine mangrove district and support integrated molecular-conventional monitoring to guide habitat protection and restoration across mangroves and tidal flats.

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Keywords

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