Interannual and seasonal variation of dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) catch rates in the southern Gulf of California, Mexico

Environmental and spatial preferences of dolphinfish (Coryphaena spp.) in the eastern Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico

“…In addition to the 2 areas with high catch that were mentioned earlier, low ICPUE occurred in an area around 11-18°N and 97-110°W, in the zone of the Eastern Pacific Warm Pool. As stated before, some authors suggest that dolphinfish abundance increases with high temperatures (Zúñiga-Flores et al, 2008); however, our findings suggest that optimal temperatures for dolphinfish are between 25°C and 28°C (with an important decrease in ICPUE at temperatures >28°C), which could explain the low ICPUE area in the Eastern Pacific Warm Pool, an area that is characterized by high (>27.5°C) SST values all year long (Fiedler and Talley, 2006).…”

“…Given the growth curve proposed by Zúñiga-Flores (2009), dolphinfish of the small-size class would be less than 3 months old, the medium-size individuals would be between 3 and 6 months old, and the large fish would be more than 6 months old. Substantial differences have been found in size at first maturity for one of the species in our study for Coryphaena hippurus, dolphinfish, in the southern part of our study area (Gulf of Tehuantepec); the dolphinfish matures at ~50 cm in fork length (FL) (Alejo-Plata et al, 2011), and in the central part (southern tip of the BCP), at around 80 cm FL (Zúñiga-Flores et al, 2011). Dolphinfish of the small-size class would then probably be all immature individuals; the medium-and large-size class of fish could be a mixture of mature and immature fish.…”

“…Dolphinfish, or both species of dolphinfish (hereafter "dolphinfish"), inhabit the tropical and subtropical waters of the world and can be found from 40°N to 40°S (Palko et al, 1982); they are fast-swimming, fast-growing voracious predators, capable of making considerable migrations (Alejo-Plata et al, 2011) and of passing through different fishery management zones within short periods of time (Farrell, 2009). Their distribution is limited by the 20°C isotherm (Palko et al, 1982), and seasonal and interannual changes in sea-surface temperature (SST) influence their local catch rate and abundance (Kraul, 1999;Norton, 1999;Zúñiga-Flores et al, 2008); additionally, their distribution seems to be influenced by prey availability and metabolic needs for sustaining their rapid growth (Schwenke, 2004). These fish are opportunistic predators and feed on a wide spectrum of prey, which includes several species of bony fish, cephalopods, and crustaceans (Aguilar-Palomino et al, 1998;Massutí et al, 1998;Oxenford, 1999;Sakamoto and Kojima;TrippValdez et al, 2010).…”

“…Norton (1999) found, for example, that dolphinfish habitat expanded poleward in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, owing to increase in downwelling forced by a long-distance wave transmission along the coast and a decrease in upwelling off the coast of northwestern Mexico, which causes an increase in SST. Zúñiga-Flores et al (2008) studied seasonal and interannual variation in dolphinfish catch rates in the Cabo San Lucas, Mexico sport fishery. They found a high correlation (~0.78, with 1-month delay) between monthly mean SST and their catch rate time series.…”

“…They found a high correlation (~0.78, with 1-month delay) between monthly mean SST and their catch rate time series. Zúñiga-Flores et al (2008) reported that dolphinfish catch rates increase toward the second half of the year, when values of SST range between 26°C and 29°C. Martínez-Rincón et al (2009) found that most (~79%) dolphinfish caught incidentally by the purseseine tuna fleet in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean were caught when SST values ranged between 25°C and 28°C, and that no seasonal or interannual spatial pattern was observed.…”