Mortality of young brown shrimp Penaeus aztecus in estuarine nurseries

Date

1989

Authors

Minello TJ
Zimmerman RJ
Martinez EX

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Abstract

We estimated actual 2-week mortalities of postlarval and juvenile brown shrimp (Penaeus aztecus ) in a Galveston Bay salt marsh by comparing densities of cohorts throughout the spring. Mortalities ranged between 33% and 61% in 1982 and 23% and 39% in 1987. Brown shrimp mortality in predator-exclusion cages during 1987 was less than 3%. These data and published information on food requirements, diseases, and physical tolerances suggest that predation is usually the major direct cause of brown shrimp mortality in estuarine nurseries of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Southern flounder Paralichthys lethostigma was the dominant fish predator on brown shrimp during the spring, and appeared to be responsible for a large portion of brown shrimp mortality. In laboratory experiments, the presence of smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora reduced predation rates of southern flounder and some of the other fish predators examined

Description

693-708

Keywords

ASW,Galveston Bay, D 04665 Crustaceans, diseases, estuaries, fish, Fishery biology, Galveston Bay, Gulf of Mexico, Laboratories, Mortality, Mortality causes, O 5020 FISHERIES,FISHERY BIOLOGY,FISHING, Penaeus aztecus, population dynamics, Predation, Q1 01442 Population dynamics, recruitment, Shrimp fisheries, Spartina, Spartina alterniflora, spring, Tolerance, USA, USA,Texas,Galveston Bay

Citation