Assessment of habitat and predator effects on dwarf rockfishes (Sebastes spp.) using multi model inference

Habitat associations and the effect of predators on dwarf rockfishes (Sebastes spp.) were investigated in two large marine protected areas (MPAs) off southern California. Using data from submersible surveys, the occurrence and abundance of dwarf rockfishes were modeled using substrata types and the biomass of predators as predictor variables. The occurrence and abundance of dwarf rockfishes generally were positively associated with rock, boulder, and cobble substrata. The association between predators and occurrence of dwarf rockfishes differed substantially between species. Predator density and biomass levels were much lower in the southern California MPAs than in a de facto MPA off central California. Better inference about predator effects on dwarf rockfishes will be possible if the predator biomass and densities of southern California MPAs increase to that observed in the de facto MPA.