The distribution and significance of stingray feeding pits in Quandamooka (Moreton Bay), Australia

Abstract

Context Quandamooka (Moreton Bay) is a large, subtropical, urban, Ramsar-listed marine park in which stingray feeding pits (SRFPs) provide nursery habitat for commercially important nekton. Aims Nearmap aerial images were used to assess the distribution and abundance of SRFPs and their relationship to shore characteristics around Quandamooka’s perimeter. Methods SRFPs were surveyed using 25-m2 quadrats overlain on aerial images at 65 sites on low-energy tidal flats around the perimeter of Quandamooka, and a polygon encompassing the region with the highest SRFP densities was used to make a preliminary assessment of its potential contribution to whiting and prawn fisheries. Key results SRFPs were present at 63 of the 65 sites surveyed, with habitat type in the high shore (especially mangroves v. seawalls) being the most important spatial driver of SRFP density. Conclusions Eastern Quandamooka sites held more SRFPs and may therefore be an important nursery habitat, holding an estimated 600,000 individuals of postlarval whiting (genus Sillago) and 8 million postlarval penaeid prawns. Implications Given the potentially important role of SRFPs for fisheries, especially those adjacent to mangroves, they should be considered a specific habitat type in future marine park zoning plans and managers should ensure the ongoing protection of stingrays.