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Resumen del producto

Diaz Palacios, M., A., Trejo Ramírez, R., González Armas, M., Hoyos Padilla, F., Galván-Magaña, D.A., Croll & J., Gómez-Gutiérrez (2020). Nursery area of a devil ray, Mobula munkiana at a marine protected area in the Espiritu Santo Archipelago (Gulf of California). Northeast Pacific Shark Symposium IV. La Pa, Baja California Sur, México, marzo 5 - 7, 2020, 1.

Nursery area of a devil ray, Mobula munkiana at a marine protected area in the Espiritu Santo Archipelago (Gulf of California)

Marta Diaz Palacios, Abel Trejo Ramírez, Rogelio González Armas, Mauricio Hoyos Padilla, Felipe Galván-Magaña, David A. Croll y J. Gómez-Gutiérrez

Nursery areas are crucial habitats for many elasmobranch populations, where females give birth and neonates and juveniles spend their first months or years. On a shallow bay at the Marine Protected Area Espiritu Santo Archipelago (ESA), an ecotourism activity based on the observation of small individuals of Munk’s devil ray was established since 2013. On this study, we assess the potential use of this bay as a nursery area by a filter feeder elasmobranch, Mobula munkiana. We describe its habitat use and seasonality, related to environmental factors. We used a combination of nonlethal methodologies as traditional tagging (n=95), passive acoustic telemetry (n=7) and environmental factors monitoring during a one-year period. Neonates and juveniles were present in higher abundances (86%) than adults and stayed in the bay for periods of up to 145 consecutive days. The residency index was significantly higher inside the bay than in pelagic habitats around the ESA. The highest residency index for neonates and juveniles was found during the months of August, September and December 2017 finding a significant and positive correlation with water temperatures (S = 2.496e+09, p < 0.05, rho=0.64) and zooplankton abundance (S = 2213, p < 0.05, rho= 0.35). The pupping period from April to August was determined by the presence of nearterm pregnant females, observations of mating behavior, females with distended cloacas and the presence of neonates. We confirmed the repeated used of ESA by neonates and juveniles across several years from photographs and videos from recreational divers and ecotourism agencies operating in the area. Therefore, we emphasize the importance of shallow bays of ESA and the surrounding region on the early life stages of M. munkiana and the implications that this information plays for managing and reducing the bycatch on coastal artisanal fisheries for this species in the region.

Palabras clave: filter-feeder elasmobranch; juveniles; habitat use; Residency; Environmental factors

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