Your place, my place…, distribution of Agonostomus monticola and Sicydium multipunctatum in the Acahuapa Watershed

Abstract

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad 89 (2018): 854 -864 Ecology Your place, my place…, distribution of Agonostomus monticola and Sicydium multipunctatum in the Acahuapa Watershed Tu lugar, mi lugar…, distribución de Agonostomus monticola y Sicydium multipunctatum en la cuenca del AcahuapaAbstract Diadromous fish undergo habitat shifts over their life cycles, dwelling between different environments. In the Acahuapa River watershed, the distribution, abundance, and length structure of A. monticola and S. multipunctatum were assessed in its tributary rivers and main channel for 1 year. Fishes were captured using electrofishing devices and nets. Environmental variables, habitat traits, and land use around the sampling points were taken into consideration. A total of 222 A. monticola and 183 S. multipunctatum were recorded during the sampled year. Their distribution was restricted to 8 of the 17 sampling points. Both species co-occurred at 7 of 8 sites, all at elevations between 19 and 325 m asl. Both species were more abundant in lower parts of the watershed and in the tributary rivers than in the main channel. Water temperature, dissolved oxygen, river width and depth, current speed, substrata dominated by rocks and logs, and surroundings of forest and small-scale agriculture favor the presence of these fishes. The smaller individuals of A. monticola occurred at lower elevations of the watershed but fish length differences were not present at the main channel or at the tributaries. For S. multipunctatum, the larger fish were captured also at low elevations and at the main channel of the Acahuapa River watershed. ResumenLos peces diádromos cambian de hábitat durante su ciclo de vida ocupando ambientes diferentes. En la cuenca del río Acahuapa, la distribución, abundancia y estructura de tallas de A. monticola y S. multipunctatum fueron evaluadas en sus ríos tributarios y en el canal principal durante 1 año. Los peces fueron capturados utilizando dispositivos de electropesca y trasmallos. Las variables ambientales, características del hábitat y el uso de suelo en los puntos de muestreo fueron cuantificados. Un total de 222 ejemplares de A. monticola y 183 de S. multipunctatum fueron registrados durante el año de muestreo. Su distribución estuvo restringida a 8 de los 17 sitios de muestreo coincidiendo en 7 de ellos, en alturas entre 19 y 325 m snm. Ambas especies fueron más abundantes en las partes bajas de la cuenca y en los ríos tributarios. La temperatura del agua, oxígeno disuelto, ancho y profundidad del río, velocidad de la corriente y sustrato dominado por rocas, troncos y rodeado por bosque o agricultura a pequeña escala favorecen la presencia de estos peces. Los peces de menor tamaño de A. monticola se encontraron en la parte baja de la cuenca sin importar si este es un río tributario o el canal principal. Peces de S. multipunctatum de mayor tamaño se capturaron S. González-Murcia, F.S. Álvarez / Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad 89 (2018): 854 -864 855 https://doi.

Is this rock pool suitable habitat? Fish diversity in intertidal rock pools of El Zonte, El Salvador

“…The intertidal rock pools of El Zonte present severe changes in habitat structure and substratum homogeneity along a spatial gradient. As in other highly dynamic environments (Córdova-Tapia et al, 2018;González-Murcia & Álvarez, 2018;Miyazono et al, 2010;Ortega et al, 2015), these conditions modify the structure of fish assemblages. Understanding patterns of occurrence of species has wide applications in conservation.…”

Cyprinodontiform fishes of El Salvador

“…Hildebrand, 1925), followed by publications over the last decades which provide basic and limited information about taxonomy and distribution (e.g. Burns & Flores, 1981;Phillips, 1981;Burns & Ramirez, 1990;McMahan et al, 2013;Álvarez, Matamoros, & Chicas, 2017;González-Murcia & Álvarez, 2018;González-Murcia, Álvarez, Alvarado-Larios, Marín-Martínez, & Angulo, 2019). However, the information on freshwater fishes of El Salvador is scarce and information gaps are evident.…”

Diet and reproduction of the fish Joturus pichardi (Mugiliformes: Mugilidae) in the Pacuare River basin, Costa Rica

“…In the Central American region, migratory freshwater fishes are known mainly within the families Mugilidae, Eleotridae and Gobiidae (Matamoros et al, 2009;Lorion, Kennedy, & Braatne, 2011;Angulo et al, 2013;McMahan et al, 2013), and there are some efforts to understand the migratory behavior, aspects of distribution, diet and reproduction of some them, mainly species as Joturus pichardi and Dajaus monticola (Mugilidae) and some species of the genus Sicydium (Gobiidae) (Bussing & López, 1977;Cruz, 1987;Cruz, 1989;Bussing, 2002;Lyons, 2005;Ribeiro & Villalobos, 2010;Eslava & Díaz, 2011;Lorion et al, 2011;Barboza & Villalobos, 2018;González-Murcia & Álvarez, 2018), however, there are still gaps in information. In addition to this, there are currently conservation difficulties for this group due to development of hydroelectric plants (Anderson, Freeman, & Pringle, 2006;Liermann, Nilsson, Robertson, & Ng, 2012), fragmentation and alteration of habitat, and different environmental problems that threatens the conservation of freshwater ecosystems and fish populations (McDowall, 1992(McDowall, , 1999Hardesty-Moore et al, 2018).…”