Latitudinal Variation in Reproduction Timing of Whiteleg Shrimp Litopenaeus Vannamei (Decapoda, Penaeidae) of the Mexican Pacific Coast

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LATITUDINAL VARIATION IN REPRODUCTION TIMING OF WHITELEG SHRIMP LITOPENAEUS VANNAMEI (DECAPODA, PENAEIDAE) OF THE MEXICAN PACIFIC COAST

E. ALBERTO ARAGÓN-NORIEGA1,3), ESTEBAN M. PÉREZ-ARVIZU1) and WENCESLAO VALENZUELA-QUIÑONEZ2) 1) Unidad Sonora del Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste, Km 2.35 Camino al Tular, Estero de Bacochibampo, Guaymas, Sonora 85454, Mexico 2) Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral Regional, Unidad Sinaloa — IPN, Boulevar Juan de Dios Batiz Paredes No. 250, Guasave, Sinaloa 81101, Mexico

ABSTRACT

The reproductive period of the whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone, 1931) was analysed to determine its relationship to sea surface temperature (SST) in two zones of the Mexican ◦ ◦ Paciﬁc coast. Mature females from ﬁshing areas in the north (Mazatlán, 23 N 106 W) and south ◦ ◦ ◦ (Gulf of Tehuantepec, 15 N95 W) and monthly SST values in a 1 geographic rectangular area ◦ were examined. Average SST for 1983-2005 increased from Mazatlán (26.2 ± 0.2 C) to Tehuan- ◦ ◦ tepec (28.3 ± 0.5 C). Seasonal variation in SST between the coldest and warmest months was 7.8 C ◦ in Mazatlán and 3.3 C in Tehuantepec. The reproductive period near Mazatlán is seven months, and it is year-round in Tehuantepec. This study suggests that warm water and low seasonal variability facilitate the reproduction of the white shrimp over a longer period.

RESUMEN

El período reproductivo de camarón blanco Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone, 1931) se analizó en relación a la temperatura superficial del mar (TSM) en dos zonas de la costa mexicana del ◦ ◦ Pacífico. Las hembras maduras de las zonas de pesca en el norte (Mazatlán 23 N 106 W) y sur ◦ ◦ (Golfo de Tehuantepec 15 N95 W), y TSM mensual de un área rectangular geográfica de 1 grado ◦ fueron examinados. El promedio de SST para 1983-2005 aumentó de Mazatlán (26,2 ± 0,2 C) ◦ a Tehuantepec (28,3 ± 0,5 C). La variación estacional de la TSM entre los meses más fríos y ◦ ◦ más cálidos fue de 7,8 C en Mazatlán y 3,3 C en Tehuantepec. El período reproductivo, cerca de Mazatlán es de siete meses al año, pero en Tehuantepec es todo el año. En conclusión, el agua cálida y la menor variabilidad estacional le permiten al camarón blanco la reproducción en un período mayor.

3) Fax: +52.6222212238; e-mail: [email protected] © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2012 Crustaceana 85 (3): 287-300 Also available online: www.brill.nl/cr DOI:10.1163/156854012X624664 288 E. ALBERTO ARAGÓN-NORIEGA ET AL.

INTRODUCTION

Latitudinal variation in reproduction timing of crustaceans is a popular hypothesis that has been tested in many species (Sastry, 1983; Bauer, 1992; Bauer & Vega, 1992; Bauer & Lin, 1994; Aragón-Noriega & Alcántara-Razo, 2005; Aragón- Noriega, 2007; Castilho et al., 2008; da Costa et al., 2010). The phenomenon has been observed in sicyoniid and caridean shrimps (Bauer, 1992) and other species of Penaeidae (da Costa & Fransozo, 2004; Castilho et al., 2008; da Costa et al., 2010) but remains poorly understood in Pacific penaeids. Aragón-Noriega & Alcántara- Razo (2005) and Aragón-Noriega (2007) confirmed that this relationship exists for Farfantepenaeus californiensis (Holmes, 1900) and Litopenaeus stylirostris (Stimpson, 1874) only in the Gulf of California. Those studies suggest indirectly that temperature is an important environmental stimulus (proximal factor) for some species of shrimp (Bauer & Vega, 1992). The hypothesis was well supported, because a condition of relatively constant temperatures in tropical seas, with high water temperatures year-round, is coupled with continuous reproduction in popu- lations of various tropical marine invertebrates. Bauer & Lin (1994) concluded that Rimapenaeus similis (Smith, 1885) and R. constrictus (Stimpson, 1874) in the Gulf of Mexico display a seasonal spawning pattern at a subtropical-temperate latitude (30◦N), and that pattern is restricted to the warmer months. In contrast, da Costa & Fransozo (2004) found mature females of the same species spawning year-round in tropical waters (23◦20N).Thisisan excellent example of how environmental dynamics vary over space and time, both year-round and in the same month, along a latitudinal gradient, and how these changes affect the timing and duration of the reproductive period, as proposed by Dall et al. (1990). Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone, 1931), another commercially important species of Pacific penaeid, is not distributed throughout the entire Gulf of California, in contrast to the other two commercial species mentioned above (L. stylirostris and F. californiensis). As L. vannamei is the focus species in this study, it is necessary to mention the debate on the proper generic name of the species (Ma et al., 2011). In this study, the classification by Pérez-Farfante & Kensley (1997) was followed. Ma et al. (2011) refuted the reclassification into six genera of Penaeus as proposed by Pérez-Farfante & Kensley (1997), based on their own results of the analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear genes. Yet, the classification widely accepted by taxonomists is the one proposed by Pérez-Farfante & Kensley (1997), because it reflects the evolutionary relationships among the 29 Penaeus species. The genera are identified using characters such as grooves on the carapace and on the last abdominal somite, hepatic ridges, and the most important for the species in this study, the shape of the thelycum.