PARENT SESSION
Poster Session 27: Fish Ecology
Thursday, August 11, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM, Exhibit Hall 220 A-E, Level 2, Palais des congrès de Montréal

Assessment of the habitat functionality of a coastal lagoon system in support of snook Centropomus undecimalis and tarpon Megalops atlanticus fisheries in Puerto Rico.

Ferrer, Orlando^*,1, Dibble, Eric², Jackson, Donald^*,2, Rundle, Kirk^*,3, ¹ La Universidad del Zulia, Maracaibo, Zulia, Venezuela² Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Mississippi State, MS, USA³ North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Deep Run, NC, USA

ABSTRACT- Our goal was to determine if the Santa Teresa lagoons (Santa Teresa 1, ST1; Santa Teresa 2, ST2) at Humacao Natural Reserve (HNR), Puerto Rico were able to sustain long-term snook (Centropomus undecimalis) and tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) fisheries. We investigated the relationships among the available prey base, structural and physicochemical habitat, and abundance and distribution of these fishes. We quantified differences in numbers of prey fishes and invertebrates, level of structural habitat provided by macrophytes, and phisicochemistry between the two lagoons potentially important in sustaining viable tarpon and snook populations. We collected fishes (N = 3,696; 10 families and 13 species), and invertebrates (N = 18,642; grass shrimp Palaemonetes sp.) with several sampling gears (trap nets, gill nets, pop nets, and light traps) and physicochemical and habitat variables between March 2000 and May 2001. ST2 was physicochemically and structurally different than ST1. Reduced turbidity and increased habitat complexity created by submersed vegetation (Najas sp.; Chara sp.) at ST2 were reflected in the composition of the fisheries resources. Tarpon predominated in ST2 and snook predominated in ST1. Tilapia represented 96% of the tarpon diet, whereas shrimp represented 23% of the snook diet. Links between fish habitat use and habitat functionality indicated that the Santa Teresa lagoons have developed in a fully functional system supporting sustainable tarpon and snook fisheries. These findings are not just based on the paradigm that fish presence reflects habitat functional value, but a confirmation that the Santa Teresa lagoons provide spawning habitat and refuge to fishes and invertebrates that serve as food for snook and tarpon.

Key words: habitat functionality, coastal lagoon, fisheries management, Caribbean Sea