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Thesis
Ecology of Inshore Lizardfish, Synodus Foetens, in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
University of West Florida Libraries
Master of Science (MS), University of West Florida
2007
Abstract
Inshore lizardfish, Synodus foetens, are among the most abundant benthic fishes in the northern Gulf of Mexico (Gulf). Despite the ecological significance their numbers simply, little is known about their ecology. The goal of this study was to examine habitat-specific density, diet, growth, and mortality of lizardfish in trawled and untrawled habitats on the Gulf shelf. Density estimates from quarterly (2004-2005) trawl samples (n = 113) were significantly different among habitat types and sampling dates (ANOVA; p 0.01), highest density occurred in sand habitats. Gut content analysis revealed a diet consisting of mostly squid and fishes. These results also indicated an ontogenetic shift from a diet of predominantly planktivorous anchovies (72.7%) in small fish to a diet composed of benthic fishes (53.8%) in larger fish. Stable isotope values (n = 45) corroborated those trends. Otolith microstructure yielded a maximum age of 9 years among samples (n = 949). Growth analysis was similar among habitats and sampling locations. Natural mortality (M) ranged from 0.33 to 0.51 y-1. Bycatch exploitation rate (Eb) ranged from 0.46 to 0.68, thus indicating Eb is significant for this unexploited species. This work represents the first significant ecological study of lizardfish in the northern Gulf.
Details
- Title
- Ecology of Inshore Lizardfish, Synodus Foetens, in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Publisher
- University of West Florida Libraries
- Format
- pdf
- Number of pages
- 112
- Copyright
- Permission granted to the University of West Florida Libraries to digitize and/or display this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires the permission of the copyright holder.
- Identifiers
- 99380090719606600
- Academic Unit
- Biology
- Language
- English
- Awarding Institution
- University of West Florida; Master of Science (MS)
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Science (MS), University of West Florida