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Short-term space use of small-bodied fish in coastal flats ecosystems in The Bahamas: an acoustic telemetry study using the smallest commercially available transmitters

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Abstract

Nearshore fish communities in marine flats ecosystems are recognised as being key for early life stages of socio-economically valued fish species, as well as small-bodied forage fishes, yet little is known about the spatial ecology of these fishes. Recent advances in acoustic telemetry have allowed for the tagging of small fish. Here, we used the smallest commercially available acoustic transmitter to tag and track several juvenile or small-bodied species of a flats fish assemblage in Rock Sound, Eleuthera, The Bahamas. Fish species tagged included juvenile bonefish (Albula vulpes; n = 2), juvenile great barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda; n = 22), juvenile redfin needlefish (Strongylura notata; n = 21), and yellowfin mojarra (Gerres cinereus; n = 20), and their movements were recorded by twenty hydrophone receivers deployed in nearshore flats habitats extending ~ 3 km along the shoreline. Yellowfin mojarra had the highest site fidelity and were detected most commonly during diurnal periods. Juvenile bonefish had the lowest site fidelity and travelled throughout the array area, primarily detected at night (albeit sample size was low). Juvenile barracuda and juvenile redfin needlefish were mobile but tended to spend the majority of their time near several receivers. Juvenile barracuda were least present during the morning but were detected during all other times of the day. Similarly, juvenile redfin needlefish had the lowest residency during the morning and were more resident during the other period. Some of the space use patterns observed appeared to be correlated with water temperature (e.g. for barracuda there were more detections at warmer water temperatures). This preliminary study reveals that it is possible to tag and track small flats fishes which opens the door for longer-term and more fine-scale (e.g. with 2-day positioning) studies to understand habitat associations and environmental drivers of behaviour although receiver detection range was somewhat limited in these shallow and dynamic habitats.

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Data availability

Data have been uploaded to the Ocean Tracking Network data warehouse (https://members.oceantrack.org/OTN/projects) where we adhere to their data policy (https://members.oceantrack.org/data/policies) which is intended to serve as a long-term repository with the goal of enabling data reuse.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canada Research Chairs Program. Additional support was provided by Bonefish and Tarpon Trust through their BTT Fellows Program. We thank the staff of the Cape Eleuthera Institute for providing logistical support. Graham Neely served as an able field assistant, forager, chef, and bodyguard. We are also thankful to several anonymous referees for their valuable input on our manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6, Canada

    Petra Szekeres, Adogbeji V. Agberien, Melissa Dick & Steven J. Cooke

  2. Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA

    Andy J. Danylchuk

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  1. Petra Szekeres
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  2. Adogbeji V. Agberien
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Correspondence to Steven J. Cooke.

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Research permits were kindly provided by the Bahamas Department of Marine Resources, whereas animal care approvals were secured from the Carleton University Animal Care Committee and conformed with the guidelines of the Canadian Council on Animal Care.

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Szekeres, P., Agberien, A.V., Dick, M. et al. Short-term space use of small-bodied fish in coastal flats ecosystems in The Bahamas: an acoustic telemetry study using the smallest commercially available transmitters. Environ Biol Fish 106, 321–336 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-022-01360-3

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