Highly Migratory Shark Fisheries Research by the National Shark Research Consortium (NSRC) 2004-2005 Award Number: NA16FL2813 Semi Annual Progress Report For Period: January 1, 2005 - June 30, 2005 SUBMITTED TO: NOAA SUBMITTED By: ROBERT E. BUETER, PH.D. MOTE MARINE LABORATORY 1600 KEN THOMPSON PARKWAY SARASOTA,FL 34236 (941) 388-4441 AUGUST 24, 2005 MOTE MARINE LABORATORY TECHNICAL REPORT NO. 1039 SEMI-ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT Award Number: NA16FL2813 Amount of Award: Federal Share $ 1,787,864 Project Title: Highly Migratory Shark Fisheries Research by the National Shark Research Consortium (NSRC), 2004-2005 Recipient: Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, Florida Award Period: July 1,2004 to June 30, 2005 Period Covered by this Report: January 1, 2005 to June 30, 2005 Primary Project Tasks: The following primary tasks were scheduled for this six-month period: Mote Marine Laboratory Component lao Shark life history, migration and stock structure I b. Relative abundance studies lc. Satellite tag testing and development I d. Freshwater habitat use 1e . Mortality rates of sharks within a coastal nursery area I f. Essential Fish Habitat environmental studies I g. Use of elemental analysis to investigate nursery habitat in bull sharks 1h . Ecosystem and population modeling Ii. Nurse shark reproductive life history, genetics and habitat studies Ij. Whale shark research in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea lk. Publications and scientific conferences 1 Moss Landing Marine Laboratories Component 2a. Eastern orth Pacific chondrichthya n life history data matrix 2b. Age, growth, and demographic studies 2c. Age validation studies 2d. Reproductive biology 2e. Feeding ecology 2f. Stable isotope analysis 2g. Habitat associations and nursery grounds 2h. Population genetic studies 2i. Shelf, slope and pelagic surveys 2j. Eastern Pacific shark fisheries analysis 2k. Taxonomic studies Virginia Institute of Marine Science Component 3a. Relati ve abundance and distribution studies 3b. Age, growth, and demographic studies 3c. Habitat utilization and migration studies 3d. Shark energetic and osmoregulatory studies 3e. Sandbar shark genetic studies 3f. Publications and conferences University of Florida Component 4a. Fishery independent sampling 4b. Age, growth, and reproduction 4c. Tagging and tracking of bull sharks 4f. Age-structured simulation model for dusky shark 4h. Regional variation in age determination characteristics of vertebrae 4i. Ova rian tissue of Atlantic stingray 4j. International Shark Attack File 4k. Web- and media-based public education 41. Project Shark Awareness 4m. Requests for information 4n. Publications and conferences 2 Summary of Results: General Project Overview Significant progress was made during this six-month period of the project. Important advances by the NSRC were made in both field and laboratory approaches to understanding the life history, abundance and environmental biology of shark species important in commercial and recreational fisheries. NSRC researchers and students continued to make significant scientific contributions through publications and conference presentations during the six-month period. There were no major problems experienced with the overall project during the period. Mote Marine Laboratory Report (R. Hueter, P/I) Mote's Center for Shark Research (CSR) served as project coordinator. No problems were encountered in the administration of the project. The following technical accomplishments were achieved during the reporting period: Shark life history, migration and stock structure. From January through June 2005, the Mote CSR captured a total of 602 sharks of 12 species. Of these sharks, 475 were tagged and released. During this same period, 24 recaptured sharks were reported and logged in the CSR database. Of these, the longest at large was a YOY blacktip shark (Careharhinus limbatus) tagged in September of 1996 along the south end of Pine Island Sound, Charlotte Harbor, Florida. It was recaptured in April of 2005 after 3,158 days (8.65 yrs) at liberty, in Boca Grande Pass, Charlotte Harbor, Florida, about 20 nm (37 km) from its original tagging site. The longest minimum at-sea distance traveled in these recaptures was reported from a blacktip shark tagged near Bahia Honda Key (Florida Keys) in January of2002. This shark was recaptured in June of2005 in the St. Joseph Bay area of Florida's panhandle, about 381 nm (706 km) from its tagging site. Three surveys for large coastal sharks were undertaken during the period, two in winter (one in the Florida Keys during February 2005 and one off Sarasota in March 2005) and one in spring (J LIn e 2005) off Sarasota. All surveys were carried out aboard the RIV Eugenie Clark except the March 2005 trip, which utilized the Florida Institute of Oceanography vessel RlV Suneoaster. Each survey consisted of 4-5 days of longline and drurnline sampling. The February survey caught 41 sharks, comprising Ginglymostoma eirratum (26), C. limbatus (11), C. aeronotus (1), C. leueas (1), C. plumbeus (1) and Sphyrna mokarran (1). The March trip caught 39 sharks, comprising C. brevipinna (30), C. aeronotus (5), C. limbatus (2), C. plumbeus (1) and Negaprion brevirostris (1). The June trip caught 63 sharks, comprising G. cirratum (20), C. aeronotus (10), Rhizoprionodon terraenovae (8), C. leueas (7), N. brevirostris (7), S. mokarran (6), C. limbatus (4) and Galeoeerdo euvier (1). In Terra Ceia Bay, Florida, 65 sets using four gear types (rod and reel, gill net, longline, and drumline) were conducted for this project during the period ofthis report. These efforts resulted in 3 the capture of 38 sharks of 4 species including C. limbatus (32), C. acronotus (3), S. tiburo (2) and C. leucas (1). A total of33 ofthese sharks were tagged in released using conventional tags, internal acoustic tags, external acoustic tags, or a combination of two types. To examine the movement patterns and behavioral responses of sharks translocated from one nursery area (Charlotte Harbor, Florida) to another (Terra Ceia Bay, Florida) a series of24 acoustic hydrophones were deployed within Terra Ceia Bay. Hydrophones were deployed in May of2005 and were used to monitor the presence and movements of sharks from both nurseries. A total of9 C. limbatus were successfully transported from Charlotte Harbor to Terra Ceia Bay. All transported individuals were weighed, measured, sexed and tagged with an external dart tag prior to fitting with acoustic transmitters. After transmitters were attached, sharks were released within the study site. Six transported sharks were released in the northern end of the study site in the region most commonly inhabited by resident C. limbatus. The remaining three individuals were released at the southern end ofthe study site distant from local animals . Six C. limbatus were captured within Terra Ceia Bay and treated as control animals for translocation experiments. Control animals were placed in transport containers for 3 hours (the duration of transport form Charlotte Harbor to Terra Ceia Bay) prior to fitting with acoustic transmitters to mimic the conditions for transport animals. All 15 sharks survived transport and surgery procedures and were released within the study site. Data from acoustic receivers are currently being gathered to examine the movement and behavior patterns of resident and translocated individuals. Due to adverse environmental conditions (hurricanes, red tide events) no additional sharks have been or will be transported during 2005. Relative abundance studies. During the period ofthis report, no blacktip relative abundance sets in primary nurseries were conducted. We decided to suspend these field activities temporarily due to concerns over high mortality of pups in the nursery as a result of red tide, as well as the direct effects of our own gillnet fishing. Instead, a large-scale analysis of this project's 10-year dataset of three Florida Gulf coast nurseries (Yankeetown, lower Tampa Bay and Pine Island Sound) was conducted and its results presented at the annual American Elasmobranch Society Meeting, July 2005, in Tampa. Overall, 970 quantitative gill nets sets were made between 1995 and 2004 resulting in the capture of8,257 sharks ofthirteen species, of which 3,842 were juvenile blacktips. Recaptures have been reported from 149 of the tagged sharks comprising 5 species. First-year blacktips have demonstrated movements of more than 280 nautical miles after leaving their summer nursery grounds. Recapture data further indicates a pattern of sharks returning to their natal nursery areas the following season and in subsequent years. A general linear model was used to standardize the CPUE data. Significant differences in the juvenile blacktip catch were found between years, nursery areas, and between grids within a nursery area. When looking at the blacktip catch rates over the entire 10- year period, there were no apparent trends that would be indicative of population level changes. Satellite tag testing and development. Tank-testing of satellite tags was not conducted during this period as the research tanks of Mote CSR's MERF (Marine Experimental Research Facility) were in use for other projects. However, field studies using PAT satellite tags continued. Three Wildlife Computers PAT tags deployed on whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) in previous project periods did not report, leading us to consider the possible reasons for satellite tag failure in this case. These reasons include: 4 • Failure of the hardware or software in the tag. • Physical damage