Ecology of three sea catfishes (Ariidae) in a tropical coastal ecosystem - Southern Gulf of Mexico

Abstract

Catfishes of the Family Ariidae are characterized as eurythermal and euryhallne inhabitants of estuarine waters. In the Southern Gulf of Mexico (Terminos Lagoon) there are 3 species: Arius felis, A. melanopus, and Bagre rnarinus. Juveniles of A. melanopus occur in the fluvial-lagoon system (FLS) in areas with oysters Crassostrea virginica, while adults occur throughout the lagoon. A.melanopusreaches sexual maturity at 160 mm total length (TL) and reproduces in FLS in salinities < 12 ppt, temperatures 2 35 "C and high turbidity waters. Males of 160 to 222 mm TL with eggs and/or embryos in their mouths are abundant in August and September, after which they migrate towards areas of greater salinity, lower temperature and less turbidity Juveniles recruit towards the western inlet (estuarine) and central basin of the lagoon. The reproduclve pattern of A. felis is the inverse of A. melanopus. Juveniles are found in areas of hgher salinity in the lagoon, and adults occur throughout the lagoon. The species matures sexually after reaching 200 mm TL and reproduces in salinities > 12 ppt, temperatures 2 30 "C, and in less turbid areas dominated by Thalassia testudi~~um meadows. Males with eggs and/or embryos in their mouths are found In September. After the incubation period adults migrate toward the eastern inlet (marine) and luveniles toward the western inlet (estuarine). B. marjnus is found only in the western inlet (estuarine), central basin, and FLS of Terminos Lagoon. This specles reproduces along the coastline and enters the lagoon at the end of the rainy and winter storm or nortes season. Juveniles use the lagoon as nursery area. The Terminos Lagoon has a high diversity of habitats due to ecological interchange with rivers, swamps and the inner shelf. Three main strategies in the use of the system by catfishes in relation to reproduction and feeding may be characterized as: (1) spawning in the rivers and swamps followed by a migration of juveniles toward the central part of the estuarine system; (2) spawning in the estuarine system; and (3) s p a w~n g in the sea followed by migration of juveniles to the FLS for feeding. Estuarine fish that have separate reproduction, growth, and feeding areas generally occur in great abundance and have adapted by reducing interspecific competition and temporal and spatial niche partition. In tropical high diversity ecosystems, biological cycles are closely related to high productivity of coastal waters, large supply of organic matter, increased food availability, and protection from predators. The estuary-inner shelf or swamp-estuary migrations can be interpreted as small-scale anadromous adaptations.

Importance of male gafftopsail catfish, Bagre marinus (Pisces: Ariidae), in the reproductive process

“…This constancy of the breeding season has also been reported for other ariid species from the Western Central Atlantic such as Ariopsis felis (Gunter 1947, Yáñez-Arancibia andLara-Domínguez 1988), Cathorops spixii (Fávaro et al 2005), C. melanopus (Yáñez-Arancibia and Lara-Domínguez 1988), Ariopsis guatemalensis (Burns and Ramírez 1990), Genidens barbus (Reis 1986), G. genidens (Gomes and Araújo 2004), Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum (Reyes and Fazlul 1990), Aspitor luniscutis (Gomes and Araújo 2004), and Sciades herzbergii (Chacón et al 1994). In general, the breeding season of nearly all these species coincides with high temperatures and the rainy season, and extends over two to six months.…”

Contrasting changes in taxonomic vs. functional diversity of tropical fish communities after habitat degradation

“…Furthermore, even if sea catfishes are classically associated with muddy substrate, Ariopsis felis adults are known to use shallow waters with seagrass as reproduction and nursery habitats (Yañez‐Arancibia and Lara‐Dominguez 1998). In our study, the abundance of Ariopsis felis was strongly decreasing, not only in the inner part of Carmen Island (Zone 2), but also in the other parts.…”

Heterogeneidad ambiental y su relación con la diversidad y abundancia de la comunidad de peces en un sistema costero del Golfo de México

“…Al igual que otras especies dominantes, C. melanopus se distribuye preferentemente en áreas someras de menor salinidad y transparencia como adulto en agosto-octubre y realiza migraciones cortas de carácter trófico y crianza que optimiza la variación temporal del ambiente. El éxito de adaptación de C. melanopus en ambientes de baja salinidad, profundidad y alta turbidez ha sido informado también por Lara-Domínguez, Yáñez-Arancibia & Amezcua-Linares (1981), Yáñez-Arancibia & Lara-Domínguez (1988), Aguirre-León et al (2010). Los resultados mostraron a O. niloticus del componente dulceacuícola como dominante en el sistema, la cual presentó alta frecuencia de aparición, sin embargo, la mayor abundancia se registró en ambientes de baja salinidad y mayor descarga de los ríos.…”