PATTERNS IN SPECIES RICHNESS, SIZE, AND LATITUDINAL RANGE OF EAST ATLANTIC FISHES

Examination of latitudinal patterns in species richness, size, and dis tributional range of East Atlantic fish, based on a compilation of dat a encompassing the full latitudinal and depth distribution of 1746 Eas t Atlantic fish species, showed that species richness declined towards higher latitudes at a rate of c. 1% of the number of species present, in five-degree bands, for each degree of latitude for both teleosts a nd elasmobranchs, regardless of habitat. However, the latitudinal patt erns in maximum fish size and latitudinal range differed between teleo sts and elasmobranchs, and changed with habitat. No clear evidence was obtained that the latitudinal range occupied increased with latitude, indicating that Rapoport's rule does not apply to E Atlantic fishes. Rather, the latitudinal patterns in species richness, size, and distri butional range of benthic Atlantic fish were depth-dependent, because species richness, average maximum size, and the average latitudinal ra nge increased with depth, and declined with latitude. The importance o f accounting for this depth-latitude covariation in the distribution o f marine fish demonstrated here, together with recent evidence obtaine d for deep-sea benthic macrofauna, points to depth and latitude as the main factors in the distribution of marine animals.