Spatial ecology and residency patterns of adult great barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda) in coastal waters of The Bahamas

Abstract

Great barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda) were implanted with acoustic telemetry transmitters (n =4 2) and monitored within a stationary acoustic receiver array (n = 53 receivers) in The Bahamas to examine residency, seasonal movements, and habitat use. Barracuda were mon- itored for up to 980 days and remained within the array area »33% (median value) of the time. Most tagged barracuda were transient and would often disappear from the array for months at a time, particularly in the summer where they were usually last detected on receivers located in deeper shelf habitats, and then return at other times in the year. Habitat use across the footprint of the array diVered, with most detections occurring in coastal areas and compara- tively fewer in deeper mosaic or shelf habitats. Linear home range estimates revealed that some barracuda moved >12 km within a single day and are capable of migrating >100 km to other islands in the Bahamian Archipelago. Our results provide some of the Wrst telemetry data for this apex marine predatory Wsh and the Wrst reliable information on the residency and localized seasonal movements of adult great barracuda in the coastal waters of the Western