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We investigated the variations of reef fish assemblages on coral reefs that experience different turbidity regimes, by assessing the association between the vertical extinction coefficient for photosynthetically active radiation (K d PAR) and communities of fishes and corals at 21 reef sites in La Parguera, southwest Puerto Rico. Statistical correlations and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMS) identified turbidity as an important environmental parameter affecting ecological processes on coral reefs, as reflected by changes in the composition and abundance of reef fishes and benthic communities. Lower fish density and species richness was found at turbid sites. Turbidity was also negatively correlated to percent coral cover, which together with rugosity, were additional habitat parameters shaping reef fish assemblages. Bluehead wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum and yellowtail damselfish Microspathodon chrysurus …