Migrations and Movements of Atlantic Tarpon Revealed by Two Decades of Satellite Tagging
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Please do not remove this page Migrations and movements of Atlantic tarpon revealed by two decades of satellite tagging Luo, Jiangang; Ault, Jerald Stephen; Ungar, Bruce T; et.al. https://scholarship.miami.edu/discovery/delivery/01UOML_INST:ResearchRepository/12378179450002976?l#13378179440002976 Luo, J., Ault, J. S., Ungar, B. T., Smith, S. G., Larkin, M., Davidson, T. N., Bryan, D., Farmer, N. A., Holt, S. A., Alford, A. S., Adams, A. J., Humston, R., Marton, A. S., Mangum, D., Kleppinger, R., Requejo, A., & Robertson, J. (2020). Migrations and movements of Atlantic tarpon revealed by two decades of satellite tagging. Fish and Fisheries (Oxford, England), 21(2), 290–318. https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12430 Published Version: https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12430 Downloaded On 2021/09/24 07:29:27 -0400 Please do not remove this page Received: 1 October 2019 | Revised: 12 November 2019 | Accepted: 18 November 2019 DOI: 10.1111/faf.12430 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Migrations and movements of Atlantic tarpon revealed by two decades of satellite tagging Jiangang Luo1 | Jerald S. Ault1 | Bruce T. Ungar1 | Steven G. Smith1 | Michael F. Larkin2 | Thomas N. Davidson3 | David R. Bryan4 | Nicholas A. Farmer2 | Scott A. Holt5 | A. Scott Alford6 | Aaron J. Adams3 | Robert Humston7 | Adam S. Marton8 | David Mangum1 | Russell Kleppinger1 | Angel Requejo1 | Julian Robertson9 1Department of Marine Ecosystems and Society, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Abstract Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Understanding large-scale migratory behaviours, local movement patterns and Miami, Florida population connectivity are critical to determining the natural processes and an- 2National Marine Fisheries Service, St. Petersburg, Florida thropogenic stressors that influence population dynamics and for developing effec- 3Bonefish Tarpon Trust, Miami, Florida tive conservation plans. Atlantic tarpon occur over a broad geographic range in the 4 Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, Atlantic Ocean where they support valuable subsistence, commercial and recrea- Seattle, Washington tional fisheries. From 2001 through 2018, we deployed 292 satellite telemetry tags 5Port Aransas Marine Laboratory, University of Texas, Port Aransas, Texas on Atlantic tarpon in coastal waters off three continents to document: (a) seasonal 6 International Tarpon Conservation migrations and regional population connectivity; (b) freshwater and estuarine habitat Association, Houston, Texas utilization; (c) spawning locations; and (d) shark predation across the south-eastern 7Washington Lee University, Lexington, Virginia United States, Gulf of Mexico and northern Caribbean Sea. These results showed 8Fieldworkers Club, Three Oaks, Michigan that some mature tarpon make long seasonal migrations over thousands of kilome- 9 Robertson Foundation, New York, New tres crossing state and national jurisdictional borders. Others showed more local York movements and habitat use. The tag data also revealed potential spawning locations Correspondence consistent with those inferred in other studies from observations of early life stage Jerald S. Ault, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of tarpon leptocephalus larvae. Our analyses indicated that shark predation mortality Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, on released tarpon is higher than previously estimated, especially at ocean passes, Miami, FL 33149, USA. Email: [email protected] river mouths and inlets to bays. To date, there has been no formal stock assessment of Atlantic tarpon, and regional fishery management plans do not exist. Our find- Funding information Division of Earth Sciences, Grant/Award ings will provide critical input to these important efforts and assist the multinational Number: EAR-1204752 community in the development of a stock-wide management information system to support informed decision-making for sustaining Atlantic tarpon fisheries. KEYWORDS population connectivity, shark predation, spawning habitats, sportfish 290 | © 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/faf Fish and Fisheries. 2020;21:290–318. LUO ET AL. | 291 1 | INTRODUCTION 1 INTRODUCTION 291 Atlantic tarpon (Megalops atlanticus, Megalopidae) has long been one 2 MATERIALS AND METHODS 291 of the most sought-after inshore marine game fishes with a long his- tory in the United States as the focus of an important recreational 2.1 Tagging 291 fishery (Aflalo, 1907; Ault & Luo, 2013; Babcock, 1921a; Dimock & 2.2 Data analyses 292 Dimock, 1912; Holder, 1903; Pinckney, 1888; Spotte, 2016), includ- 3 RESULTS 293 ing participation by US Presidents, as recorded in many publications 3.1 Tag deployments 293 (Mares, 1999; Mill, 2010; Stilwell, 2011). The US fishery today has an 3.2 Seasonal migrations and distributions 294 annual economic impact of more than $6 billion, providing thousands 3.3 Estuarine and riverine utilization 295 of jobs (Ault, 2008; Steinback, Gentner, & Castle, 2004). Sport fish- 3.4 Spawning habitats 296 ing for tarpon is also very popular in other countries, where numer- 3.5 Predation by sharks 297 ous records have been recorded for large fish caught in Venezuela, 4 DISCUSSION 297 Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau, Mexico, Brazil, and Cuba (IGFA, 2018). 4.1 Tag deployments 297 While tarpon fishing in the United States is predominately catch- 4.2 Seasonal migrations and distributions 298 and-release, artisanal subsistence and commercial harvests of tar- 4.3 Estuarine and riverine utilization 299 pon occur in many countries outside the United States (Adams et al., 2014; Anyanwu & Kusemiju, 2008; Anyanwu et al., 2009). 4.4 Spawning habitats 299 Despite the history and importance of recreational catch-and- 4.5 Predation by sharks 300 release fishing for tarpon in the United States, the paucity of data 5 IMPLICATIONS FOR FISHERY MANAGEMENT 303 and models on population dynamics and migrations limits opportuni- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 304 ties for developing an effective regional management plan to sustain REFERENCES 305 this valuable resource (Ault et al., 2008). Atlantic tarpon are now SUPPORTING INFORMATION 308 threatened throughout their range by recreational fishing release APPENDIX 309 mortality, directed commercial harvests, intensive harvesting of key prey species and degradation of habitats for both predator and prey (Ault, 2008; Boesch et al., 1994; Polidoro et al., 2010; Waycott et al., 2009). A recent IUCN assessment classified Atlantic tarpon as Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and vulnerable (Adams et al., 2014). Georgia), Mexico, Belize, Nicaragua and Trinidad (Table A1, Figure 1). A principal impediment to sustaining highly migratory marine The total of 292 deployed tags included the following: 199 Pop-up species is the lack of scientific understanding of the locations, at- Archival Transmitting (PAT) and 88 Smart Position and Temperature tributes and migratory connectivity of important habitats (Runge, (SPOT) tags from Wildlife Computers, Inc. (wildl ifeco mpute rs.com); Martin, Possingham, Willis, & Fuller, 2014; Webster, Marra, Haig, 1 PAT tag from Lotek Wireless, Inc. (lotek.com); and 4 PAT tags from Bensch, & Holmes, 2002). Without such knowledge, regional man- Microwave Telemetry, Inc. (micro wavet eleme try.com). Each tag agement strategies are difficult to conceptualize, develop and imple- bore a fixed label containing our international toll-free phone num- ment (Hansson & Akesson, 2014). To improve this understanding, we ber, email address and a request for return of the tag. employed satellite telemetry technologies in an intensive multiyear Tarpon were captured with standard hook-and-line gears on (2001–2018) study of Atlantic tarpon over three continents with chartered recreational fishing vessels, using the heaviest tackle fea- focus on the coastal waters of the south-eastern United States, Gulf sible to minimize fight time. During the tagging process, tarpon at of Mexico and northern Caribbean Sea. Our specific objectives were boat side were kept completely in the water to prevent injury by to reveal (a) seasonal migrations and regional population connectiv- either: (a) guiding the fish into a specially designed sling or (b) using ity; (b) utilization of freshwater and estuarine habitats; (c) potential a lock-jaw gaff and tailer. Once secure, fork length (FL) and girth (G) spawning locations; and (d) predation mortality by sharks. were measured in centimetre. Body weight (kg) was computed with the algorithm of Ault and Luo (2013). Satellite tags were secured to tarpon via a tether (a 30-cm stainless steel wire encased in a med- 2 | MATERIALS AND METHODS ical grade Tygon tube) that was attached to a titanium anchor dart (Figure 1). Anchor darts were coated with an antibiotic cream. Two 2.1 | Tagging scales were removed from anterior of the first dorsal fin about one third of the distance to the head. The dart was then inserted approx- Electronic satellite telemetry tags from several manufacturers were imately 8 cm deep at a 45° angle towards the head into the tissue deployed on Atlantic tarpon from 2001 to 2018 in coastal waters where the scales had been removed. of the western central Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and Pop-up Archival Transmitting tags deployed on tarpon were Caribbean Sea including the United States (i.e. Florida, Alabama, pre-programmed to collect high-resolution data at either 1-, 292 | LUO ET AL. FIGURE 1 Bathymetric map of the western central Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea overlain with satellite tag deployment (red dots)