Ichthyological Research

, Volume 56, Issue 3, pp 266–275 | Cite as

Patterns of distribution and abundance of bonefish larvae Albula spp. (Albulidae) in the western Caribbean and adjacent areas

  • Lourdes Vásquez-Yeomans
  • Eloy Sosa-Cordero
  • Monica R. Lara
  • Aaron J. Adams
  • José A. Cohuo
Full Paper
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Abstract

Overall patterns of distribution and abundance of Albula spp. leptocephali larvae offshore in the western Caribbean Sea (CAS) and Gulf of Mexico (GOM), and in coastal waters of the Mexican Caribbean (MXC) were analyzed from: (a) cruise data available from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (CAS, GOM) and (b) coastal plankton surveys (1998–2002 and January 2004) (MXC). We found striking inshore-offshore differences in the larval catch and size structure. Offshore cruises yielded 57 leptocephali, mostly determined as early stage I (18.0 ± 8.2 mm SL, mean ± SD). In contrast, coastal samples yielded 2,466 larvae 51.4 ± 3.6 mm SL, mostly late stage I; of these, 2,345 (95%) were caught over 4 nights in January 2004. The relationship between the larval length (mm, SL) and the distance to the coastline (km) was best represented by the regression model \( LENGTH_{ij} = 51.44 - 0.235 \cdot DISTANCE_{ij} + \varepsilon_{ij} \) with a distinct variance for each locality. To ascertain whether the coastal inflow of leptocephali follows a regular seasonal pattern or depends on episodic events will require further monitoring; available evidence suggests that the southern coast of the MXC offers favorable conditions for the recruitment of Albula spp. larvae.

Keywords

Leptocephali Bonefish Light traps Mesoamerican Reef System 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

These results are part of the doctoral thesis of the first author, which is being conducted though in CINVESTAV-Unidad Mérida. We thank Estrella Malca, Roberto Herrera, César Quintal, Alfredo Martin, and Nemesio Salazar for field assistance. Margarita Ornelas helped with sample sorting of Bacalar Chico. The authors would like to thank Laura Carrillo, who read the initial manuscript and offered helpful comments, Eduardo Suárez-Morales for valuable comments and editorial assistance, and two anonymous reviewers for their constructive and insightful comments. Uriel Ordóñez-López provided unpublished data. Funding for the work was provided in part by CONABIO project S026, NOAA/UM project 517/04 (Monitoring Coral Reef Fish Utilization of MPAs and Recruitment Connectivity between the Florida Keys and Meso-American Reefs), and ECOSUR project 41007 Ecología y Taxonomía del Zooplancton Marino. We also acknowledge the logistic support of the Dirección de la Reserva de la Biosfera de Sian Ka’an (RBSK) and Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Xcalak (PNAX), especially its director, María del Carmen García. This investigation counts were carried out with permission for scientific collection by the Mexican government.

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Copyright information

© The Ichthyological Society of Japan 2009

Authors and Affiliations

  • Lourdes Vásquez-Yeomans
    • 1
    • 2
  • Eloy Sosa-Cordero
    • 2
  • Monica R. Lara
    • 3
  • Aaron J. Adams
    • 4
  • José A. Cohuo
    • 2
  1. 1.Centro de Estudios Investigación y Estudios Avanzados del IPNUnidad MéridaMéridaMexico
  2. 2.El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR)ChetumalMexico
  3. 3.Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric StudiesUniversity of Miami-RSMASMiamiUSA
  4. 4.Fisheries Habitat Ecology Program Center for Fisheries EnhancementMote Marine Lab Charlotte Harbor Field StationCharlotteUSA

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