Reproductive Biology of Blue Runner (Caranx Crysos) from the Eastern Gulf of Mexico James M
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Northeast Gulf Science Volume 7 Article 2 Number 2 Number 2 3-1985 Reproductive Biology of Blue Runner (Caranx crysos) from the Eastern Gulf of Mexico James M. Goodwin IV John H. Finucane National Marine Fisheries Service DOI: 10.18785/negs.0702.02 Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/goms Recommended Citation Goodwin, J. M. IV and J. H. Finucane. 1985. Reproductive Biology of Blue Runner (Caranx crysos) from the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. Northeast Gulf Science 7 (2). Retrieved from https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol7/iss2/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Gulf of Mexico Science by an authorized editor of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Goodwin and Finucane: Reproductive Biology of Blue Runner (Caranx crysos) from the East Northeast Gulf Science Vol. 7, No. 2, p. 139·146 March 1985 REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY OF BLUE RUNNER (Caranx crysos) FROM THE EASTERN GULF OF MEXICO James M. Goodwin, IV 8112 South Lagoon Drive, Panama City, FL 32047 and John H. Finucane Southeast Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA Panama City Laboratory 3500 Delwood Beach Road, Panama City, FL 32407-7499 ABSTRACT: Blue runner were obtained from commercial fisheries in south Florida, northwest Florida, and the Mississippi Delta. Monthly mean gonadosomatic indices indicated that peak spawning occurred in June, July, and August for all areas with a secondary peak in October for northwest Florida. The spawning season was confirmed for the south Florida collection by histological examination of gonads. Probit analysis of 185 northwest Florida blue runner captured during peak spawning months indicated a length-at-maturity of 267 mm. Fecundity varied from 41,000 ova in a 243·mm·FL, 288-gram fish to 1,546,000 ova in a 385·mm· FL, 1,076-gram fish. Sex ratios were 1.15F:1M for Mississippi Delta, 1.66F:1M for northwest Florida and 1.91 F:1 M for south Florida. The blue runner, Caranx crysos, is a Seasonal occurrence of young blue coastal pelagic species of the western runner in collections made by various north Atlantic, ranging from Nova Scotia researchers has provided a basis of to Brazil (McKenney et at., 1958). It is estimating spawning cycles. Berry (1959) abundant along the southeast coast of noted from larval sizes that spawning the United States, through the West extended from early April to early Indies faunal region and, seasonally, the September off the southeastern Atlantic northeast Gulf of Mexico (Berry, 1959; coast of the United States. Juveniles Ginsburg, 1952). Blue runner are present (<100 mm SL) were found by Dooley in Bermuda water but are less abundant (1972) in peak abundance during June there than elsewhere (Nichols, 1939). and July off southeast Florida where Blue runner occur singly or in they have a close affinity with the schools and are captured by sport and sargassum community and the Gulf commercial fishermen for bait, food, Steam. McKenney eta/. (1958) and Fahay and sport. About 307 t of blue runner (1975) stated that spawning occurred were taken commercially off the west year-round; however 75% of the post coast of Florida during 1978 larvae collected by McKenney et a/. (Anonymous, 1981). More recently large (1958) were taken from April through numbers of fish are now being caught August. Montolio (1976) noted two together with red drum, Sciaenops separate spawning peaks based on his ace/latus, by purse seiners off the larval collections from the south-central Mississippi Delta (Overstreet, 1983). Blue Gulf of Mexico, one in April-May, and the runner are also taken by charter boats off other in August-September. A summary the Atlantic and gulf coasts and by pier of the reproductive biology of blue and jetty anglers. runner is also given by Johnson (1978). Published by The Aquila Digital Community, 1984 139 1 Gulf of Mexico Science, Vol. 7 [1984], No. 2, Art. 2 140 J.M. Goodwin, IV and J.H. Finucane Other aspects of the biology of blue fixative for storage. Later gonads were runner are less well known. Munro (1974) weighed to the nearest 0.1 g for calcula provided a length-weight equation of W tion of gonadosomatic index (GSI) 3 302 = .0065 TL · , where W = weight in g according to the formula: gonad and TL = total length in mm, and weight/whole body weight x 100. The estimates of 620 mm TL for maximum spawning season for each area was length and 5,400 g for maximum weight inferred by examining the mean GSI from the Caribbean Sea. Berry (1979) according to month of capture. Blue noted a maximum record fork length (FL) runner taken only from south Florida of 711 mm and an estimated maximum from April 1980 through April1981 were weight of 2,724 g and he estimated used to verify the spawning season by length-at-maturity occurred at 225-250 histological examination of gonadal mm SL. Reintjes (1959) stated that no tissue. Five to ten gonads from each data were available on age-size relation month were selected. Tissue samples ship, growth rates, age-at-first spawning, were randomly taken from each gonad, life expectancy, mortality rates, and sex then dehydrated, embedded in paraplast ratios. The purpose of this investigation and sectioned at 7-10 1-1· All samples were was to expand further our knowledge of stained with a modification of Mallory's blue runner reproductive biology by triple stain. Two-hundred ova from each determining spawning season, fecundity, ovarian section were classified as length-at-maturity, and sex ratios from follows: stage I, immature/resting; stage the eastern Gulf of Mexico. II, maturing; stage Ill, mature; stage IV, ripe; stage V, spent. These ova stages METHODS were similar to those reported by Bag lin (1982) for his whole ovarian development. We examined gonads from 1179 Sex ratios were determined for each of blue runner (447 males and 732 females the three study areas and were examined that were obtained during 1980 and for deviation from the expected ratio of 1981 from three geographic areas. Fish 1:1 by chi-square analyses (Snedecor and from northwest Florida were purchased Cochran, 1967). fresh from local fish houses. Mississippi Length-at-maturity was estimated Delta fish were taken by stratified by probit analysis from the lengths of 185 sub-sampling techniques of Ketchen northwest Florida female blue runner (1950) from drum seine catches made taken from May to August. Sub-samples in Louisiana coastal waters west of ovarian tissue from each fish were of the Mississippi River. These fish placed in watch glasses, teased apart, had been held on ice for 2-5 days and the ova examined at SOX magnifica prior to landing. Blue runner from south tion for their state of maturation. Florida were obtained fresh from Classification of individuals as mature or commercial fishermen from Marathon, immature was made on the basis of the Florida, and were then frozen for presence or absence of vitellogenic ova shipment to Panama City, Florida. All greater than 200 1-1 in diameter. Fish were fish were weighed for total body weight grouped into 10-mm FL intervals, and the to the nearest g and measured for fork percentage of mature individuals was length to the nearest mm. determined for each interval. Percen Gonads were preserved initially in tages were converted to probits and 10% Formalin and then placed in Bouin's plotted against fork length by the https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol7/iss2/2 2 DOI: 10.18785/negs.0702.02 Goodwin and Finucane: Reproductive Biology of Blue Runner (Caranx crysos) from the East Reproductive biology of blue runner 141 4.0 methods of Natrella (1973) to determine MISSISSIPPI 3.5 DELTA the size at which 50% of individuals may 3.0 No 325 be expected to become mature. Vi 2.5 Maturing or mature ovaries of 25 (!) z 2.0 blue runner taken from all three study < ~ 1.5 areas during peak spawning months 1.0 were used to estimate fecundity. Fish 0.5 were selected from several fork length intervals to allow correlation of fecundity OL-~~F-7.M~A~M~~J-7J~A~~~~~ MONTH with length. Three wedge-shaped 4D 4D MALE samples of ovarian tissue extending 0----0 FEMALE from the outer tunic to the central lumen 3.0 and weighing approximately 0.1 g each SOUTH - 2.5 FLORIDA were removed from each gonad at sites VI (!) 2.0 No 399 selected according to a random numbers ~ 1.5 table. The samples were weighed to the ~ nearest 0.01 g, teased apart, and counts 1.0 made of total number of ova exceeding 200 11 in diameter. Data from the three samples were combined and used to 3.0 estimate fecundity by the formula: F = NORTHWEST Vi 2.5 FLORIDA NxW/w, where F is fecundity, N is the (!) 2.0 No455 combined ovum count from the three z ;:l ].5 samples, W is the total gonad weight, ~ and w is the combined weight of the 1.0 three samples. This technique for deter 0.5 mining fecundity was similar to that O JFMAMJJASOND used by Finucane and Collins (1984). MONTH Figure 1. Seasonal variation in mean gonadoso matic index for male and female blue runner RESULTS collected from three study areas during 1980 and 1981. Monthly mean GSis for males and only from May through October from the females from the Mississippi Delta and Mississippi Delta and from April through south Florida indicated that June, October in northwest Florida.