Assessing the habitat structure for common snook (Centropomus undecimalis bloch, 1792) and Tarpon (Megalops atlanticus valenciennes, 1847) in Santa Teresa lagoons, Puerto Rico

This paper assessed whether the habitat structure of the Santa Teresa lagoons, Humacao Natural Reserve (HNR), Puerto Rico was able to support long-term fisheries of tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) and common snook (Centropomus undecimalis). Relations between fish and invertebrate communities and the physicochemical and habitat structure of the lagoon system were identified. Santa Teresa 2 (ST2) was physicochemically and structurally different than Santa Teresa 1 (ST1). Reduced turbidity and increased habitat complexity created by submersed vegetation in ST2 were reflected in the composition of the fisheries resources. Tarpon predominated in ST2 and common snook predominated in ST1. Catch-perunit- effort (CPUE) of tilapia (Mozambique tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus and redbreast tilapia Tilapia rendalli) was the highest in ST2, and CPUE of grass shrimp (Palaemonetes sp.) was the highest in ST1. Tilapia represented 96% of the tarpon diet, whereas grass shrimp represented 23% of the snook diet. Links between fish habitat use and habitat structure indicated that the Santa Teresa lagoons have the habitat structure necessary to support tarpon and snook long-term fisheries.

Anahtar Kelimeler:

Centropomus undecimalis, Karayip Denizi, kıyı gölü, habitatlar, ABD, Porto Riko, Megalops atlanticus, av, tuzak

PDF

___

Callaway, J.C., Sullivan, G., Desmond, J.S., Williams, G.D. and Zedler, J.B. 2001. Assessment and monitoring. In: J.B. Zedler (Ed.), Handbook for restoring tidal wetlands. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA: 271- 335.

Crabtree, R.E., Cyr, E.C., Bishop, R.E., Falkenstein, L.M. and Dean, J.M. 1992. Age and growth of tarpon, Megalops atlanticus, larvae in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, with notes on relative abundance and probable spawning areas. Environmental Biology of Fishes, 35: 361-370.

Crabtree, R.E., Cyr, E.C., Chacón-Cheverri, D., McLarney, W.O. and Dean, J.M. 1997. Reproduction of tarpon, Megalops atlanticus, from Florida and Costa Rican waters and notes on their age and growth. Bulletin of Marine Science, 61: 271-285.

Department of Natural and Environmental Resources of Puerto Rico. 1995. Operation of the Humacao Wildlife Refuge, Grant Agreement FW-10. Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. San Juan, Puerto Rico, 27 pp.

Erdman, D.S. 1967. Inland game fishes of Puerto Rico. Department of Agriculture, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 85 pp.

Erdman, D.S., Berríos-Díaz, J.M., Corujo-Flores, I.N. and González-Azar, J. 1986. Los peces marinos de Puerto Rico. Compendio Enciclopédico de los Recursos Naturales de Puerto Rico, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 487 pp.

Floyd, K.B., Hoyt, R.D. and Timbrook, S. 1984. Chronology of appearance and habitat partitioning by stream larval fishes. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 113: 217-223.

Froese, R. and Pauly, D. 2000. FishBase 2000: concepts, design and data sources. ICLARM, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines.

Griffiths, S.P. 2001. Factors influencing fish composition in an Australian intermittently open estuary. Is stability salinity-dependent? Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 52: 739-751.

Helfman, G.S., Collette, B.C. and Facey, D.E. 1997. The diversity of fishes. Blackwell Science, Boston, Massachusetts, 528 pp.

Jackson, D.C., Dibble, E.D., Rundle, K. and Ferrer- Montaño, O.J. 2001. Fisheries dynamics and management orientations for Humacao Natural Reserve, Puerto Rico. Completion Report, Federal Aid Project F-44.1, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Mississippi State University, 133 pp.

Killgore, K.J., Morgan II, R.P. and Rybicki, N.B. 1989. Distribution and abundance of fishes associated with submersed aquatic plants in the Potomac River. North American Journal of Fisheries Management, 9: 101- 111.

Kuo, S.R., Lin, H.J. and Shan, K.T. 2001. Seasonal changes in abundance and composition of the fish assemblage in Chiku Lagoon, southwestern Taiwan. Bulletin of Marine Science, 68: 85-99.

Kwak, T.J. and Zedler, J.B. 1997. Food web analysis of southern California coastal wetlands using multiple stable isotopes. Oecologia, 110: 262-277.

Larson, E.W., Johnson, D.L. and Lynch Jr., W.E. 1986. A buoyant pop net for accurately sampling fish at artificial habitat structures. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 115: 351-355.

Levin, L.A., Talley, D. and Thayer, G. 1996. Succession of macrobenthos in a created salt marsh. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 141: 67-82.

Lima, S.L. and Dill, L.M. 1990. Behavioral decisions made under the risk of predation: a review and prospectus. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 68: 619-640.

Martin, F.D. and Patus, J.W. 1984. An annotated key to the teleost fishes of Puerto Rico. In: F.D. Martin and J.W. Patus (Eds.) Compendio Enciclopédico de los Recursos Naturales de Puerto Rico, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico: 1- 191.

Milliken, G.A. and Johnson, D.E. 1992. Analysis of messy data. Designed experiments. Chapman and Hall/CRC, Boca Raton, FL, USA, 480 pp.

Minello, T.J. and Webb Jr., J.W. 1997. Use of natural and created Spartina alterniflora salt marshes by fishery species and other aquatic fauna in Galveston Bay, Texas, USA. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 151: 165-179.

Minello, T.J. and Zimmerman, R.J. 1992. Utilization of natural and transplanted Texas salt marshes by fish and decapod crustaceans. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 90: 273-285.

Pauly, D. 1976. The biology, fishery and potential for aquaculture of Tilapia melanotheron in a small West African lagoon. Aquaculture, 7: 33-49.

Pennak, R.W. 1989. Fresh-Water Invertebrates of the United States. Protozoa to Mollusca. 3rd Edition. John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY, USA, 628 pp.

Peters, K.M., Matheson Jr., R.E. and Taylor, R.G. 1998. Reproduction and early life history of common snook, Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch), in Florida. Bulletin of Marine Science, 62: 509-529.

Quammen, M.L. 1984. Predation by shorebirds, fish and crabs on invertebrates in intertidal mudflats: an experimental test. Ecology, 65: 529-537.

SAS. (2003) SAS/STAT Version 9.1.3. SAS Institute, Inc., Cary, North Carolina.

Underwood, A.J. 1997. Experiments in ecology. Their logical design and interpretation using analysis of variance. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, U.K, 522 pp.

United States Department of Commerce and Department of Natural and Environmental Resources of Puerto Rico. 1986. Declaración de impacto ambiental preliminar y plan de manejo para el propuesto segmento de Humacao del sistema nacional para investigaciones estuarinas de Puerto Rico. Washington D.C. and San Juan, Puerto Rico, USA, 97 pp.

Vilella, F. and Gray, M. 1997. Ecological assessment and management plan for the Humacao Wildlife Refuge. Final Report. Federal Aid Project FW-10. Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, San Juan, Puerto Rico, USA, 315 pp.

Williams, G.D. and Desmond, J.S. 2001. Restoring assemblages of invertebrates and fishes. In: J.B. Zedler (Ed.) Handbook for restoring tidal wetlands. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA: 235-269.

Zedler, J.B. 2001. Introduction. J.B. Zedler (Ed.) Handbook for restoring tidal wetlands. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA: 1-37.