Paralarvae and juvenile of cephalopods in the Mexican South Pacific

Authors

  • Ma. del Carmen Alejo-Plata Instituto de Recursos. Universidad del Mar Campus Puerto Ángel Ciudad Universitaria, Puerto Ángel, Apartado postal 47, 70902 Oaxaca, México
  • Rubén García-Guillén Programa de Biología Marina, Universidad del Mar Campus Puerto Ánge
  • Jorge Herrera-Galindo Instituto de Recursos. Universidad del Mar Campus Puerto Ángel Ciudad Universitaria, Puerto Ángel, Apartado postal 47, 70902 Oaxaca, México

Keywords:

Abundance, Gulf of Tehuantepec, squid distribution, taxonomy, zooplankton.

Abstract

Early life cephalopod stages are poorly studied and inadequately described. This study presents for the first time the composition of species, patterns of distribution, and abundance of parlarvae and juveniles of cephalopods in the Gulf of Tehuantepec, a highly productive and ecologically complex region. Paralarvae and juvenile were recovered from zooplancton samples collected with bongo tows (10-15 °N, 96-100 °O) on board of the O/V El Puma during June and September 2001. A third set of samples were obtained on board the B/P UMAR in November 2001 (14-16 °N, 93-97 °O) with a CalCOFI net. Average density of cephalopods was 16.2 organisms x 1000 m-3. Six families representing eight genera and at least 13 species were identified. The most abundant families were: Octopodidae (48.5% of specimens examined), Enoploteuthidae (15.9%), Argonautidae (13.3%), Ommastrephidae (11.5%), Onychoteuthidae (6.7%), and Cranchiidae (4.1%). The results revealed a typical tropical and oceanic cephalopod assemblage. The mantle length (ML) ranged between 0.2 and 37.8 mm; most specimens (90%) were small-sized, measuring less than 3 mm ML. The main genera and species are illustrated and their meso-scale distribution patterns are discussed. Results provide new information on the presence and relative abundance of tropical species in this region of the Eastern Pacific.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Published

2017-02-05

How to Cite

Alejo-Plata, M. del C., García-Guillén, R., & Herrera-Galindo, J. (2017). Paralarvae and juvenile of cephalopods in the Mexican South Pacific. HIDROBIOLÓGICA, 23(2), 250–264. Retrieved from https://hidrobiologica.izt.uam.mx/hidrobiologica/index.php/revHidro/article/view/643

Issue

Section

Artículos

Most read articles by the same author(s)