Relationships between Larval and Juvenile Abundance of Winter‐Spawned Fishes in North Carolina, USA

J Christopher Taylor,Harvey J Walsh,Jonathan A Hare,Warren A Mitchell,Gretchen Bath Martin,Jeffrey A Buckel,Kyle W Shertzer

doi:10.1577/c08-015.1

Abstract

AbstractWe analyzed the relationships between the larval and juvenile abundances of selected estuarine‐dependent fishes that spawn during the winter in continental shelf waters of the U.S. Atlantic coast. Six species were included in the analysis based on their ecological and economic importance and relative abundance in available surveys: spot Leiostomus xanthurus, pinfish Lagodon rhomboides, southern flounder Paralichthys lethostigma, summer flounder Paralichthys dentatus, Atlantic croaker Micropogonias undulatus, and Atlantic menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus. Cross‐correlation analysis was used to examine the relationships between the larval and juvenile abundances within species. Tests of synchrony across species were used to find similarities in recruitment dynamics for species with similar winter shelf‐spawning life‐history strategies. Positive correlations were found between the larval and juvenile abundances for three of the six selected species (spot, pinfish, and southern flounder). These three species have similar geographic ranges that primarily lie south of Cape Hatteras. There were no significant correlations between the larval and juvenile abundances for the other three species (summer flounder, Atlantic croaker, and Atlantic menhaden); we suggest several factors that could account for the lack of a relationship. Synchrony was found among the three southern species within both the larval and juvenile abundance time series. These results provide support for using larval ingress measures as indices of abundance for these and other species with similar geographic ranges and winter shelf‐spawning life‐history strategies.

Highlights

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Narragansett Laboratory, Narragansett, Rhode Island, USA
The annual mean larval concentrations of pinfish, spot, and southern flounder at ingress were positively correlated to spring juvenile abundance, especially within the river habitats (Table 2; Figure 3)
The correlations between larval concentration in the winter and juvenile abundance in the summer were significant for spot and southern flounder in river habitats and for pinfish in both river and sound habitats

Summary

Introduction

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Narragansett Laboratory, Narragansett, Rhode Island, USA. Synchrony was found among the three southern species within both the larval and juvenile abundance time series These results provide support for using larval ingress measures as indices of abundance for these and other species with similar geographic ranges and winter shelf-spawning life-history strategies. A critical stage of this life-history pattern is the passage through narrow inlets or into mouths of estuaries that connect the ocean and estuarine habitats. These pathways to nursery habitats are few in number along much of the Atlantic coast of the United States and serve as bottlenecks to recruitment for many species (Reyier and Shenker 2007).

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