Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-7cvxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T22:42:21.250Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Reproductive biology of the banded guitarfish, Zapteryx exasperata, from the Gulf of California, México

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 August 2009

María-Del-Pilar Blanco-Parra*
Affiliation:
Posgrado en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, circuito exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria, México D.F. C.P. 04510, México
J. Fernando Márquez-Farías
Affiliation:
Facultad de Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa, Paseo Claussen s/n, Col. Los Pinos, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, México Centro Regional de Investigación Pesquera de Mazatlán, Instituto Nacional de Pesca, Calzada Sábalo–Cerritos, s/n, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, C.P. 82010, México
Felipe Galván-Magaña
Affiliation:
Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Avenida Politécnico Nacional s/n, Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, La Paz, B.C.S.México
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: M.D.P. Blanco-Parra, Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Instituto, Politécnico Nacional, Avenida Politécnico Nacional s/n, Col. Playa Palo, de Santa Rita La Paz, B.C.S.México email: [email protected]

Abstract

The banded guitarfish, Zapteryx exasperata, is a common species in the artisanal elasmobranch fisheries in the Gulf of California. Fishery-derived specimens were examined to determine critical aspects of the reproductive biology of this poorly known group of rays. Two functional testes and ovaries were found in males and females respectively. Median size at maturity (L50%) for males was 64 cm total length (TL) and for females 69 cm TL. Average length of gravid females was 78.8±3.8 cm TL. Histological analysis showed no evidence of sperm storage in the oviducal gland. Gestation was estimated to occur over a five to six month period (February–July) and was concurrent with vitellogenesis. Mean uterine fecundity was estimated as 7 (range 2–13, SD. = 3). The sex-ratio of embryos was 1:1. The reproductive cycle for Z. exasperata from the Gulf of California was estimated to last one year with parturition, ovulation and copulation occurring during the summer months. Differences found in the reproductive cycle of Z. exasperata between the Gulf of California and the west coast of Baja California could have implications in the future management plans for this fishery in the Gulf of California.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Abdel-Aziz, S.H., Khalil, A.N. and Abdel-Maguid, S.A. (1993) Reproductive cycle of the common guitarfish, Rhinobatos rhinobatos (Linnaeus, 1758), in Alexandria waters, Mediterranean Sea. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 44, 507517.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bizzarro, J.J., Smith, W.D., Márquez-Farías, J.F. and Hueter, R.E. (2007) Artisanal fisheries and reproductive biology of the golden cownose ray, Rhinoptera steindachneri Everman and Jenkins, 1891, in the northern Mexican Pacific. Fisheries Research 84, 137146.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bonner, K. and Vincz, G. (2005) The testis and spermatogenesis. In Hamlett, W.C. (ed.) Reproductive biology and phylogeny of chondrichthyes. Volume 3 Enfield, NH: Science Publishers, Inc, pp. 171201.Google Scholar
Capapé, C. and Zaouali, J. (1994) Distribution and reproductive biology of the blackchin guitarfish, Rhinobatos cemiculus (Pisces, Rhinobatidae), in Tunisian waters (Central Mediterranean). Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 45, 551561.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Capapé, C., Ben-Brahim, R. and Zaouali, J. (1997) Aspects de la biologie de la reproduction de la guitare commune (Rhinobatos rhinobatos) des eaux tunisiennes. Ichtyophysiologica Acta 20, 113127.Google Scholar
Carrier, C., Pratt, H.L. and Castro, J.I. (2004) Reproductive biology of elasmobranch. In Carrier, C., Musick, J.A. and Heithaus, M.R. (eds) Biology of sharks and their relatives. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, pp. 269284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Castro, J.I. and Wourms, J.P. (1993) Reproduction, placentation and embryonic development of the Atlantic sharpnose shark, Rhizoprionodon terraenovae. Journal of Morphology 218, 257280.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Compagno, L.J.V. (2005) Checklist of living chondrichthyes. In Hamlett, W.C. (ed.) Reproductive biology and phylogeny of chondrichthyes. Volume 3 Enfield, NH: Science Publishers, pp. 503549.Google Scholar
CONAPESCA (2002) Anuario estadístico de pesca 2002. México, D.F.: SAGARPA.Google Scholar
Cortés, E. (2000) Life history patterns and correlations in sharks. Reviews in Fisheries Science 8, 299344.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Devadoss, P. (1998) Observations on the breeding and development in some batoid fishes. Indian Journal of Fisheries 45, 271283.Google Scholar
Dulvy, N.K. and Reynolds, J.D. (2002) Predicting extinction vulnerability in skates. Conservation Biology 16, 440450.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ebert, D.A. (2003) Sharks, rays and chimaeras of California. Los Angeles: University of California.Google Scholar
Fisher, W., Krupp, F., Schneider, W., Sommer, C., Carpeter, K. and Niem, V. (1995) Pacífico Centro-Oriental; Guía FAO para la identificación de especies para los fines de pesca. Rome: FAO.Google Scholar
Ismen, A., Yigin, C. and Ismen, P. (2007) Age, growth, reproductive biology and feed of the common guitarfish (Rhinobatos rhinobatos Linnaeus, 1758) in Iskenderun Bay, the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Fisheries Research 84, 263269.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kyne, P.M. and Bennett, M.B. (2002) Reproductive biology of the eastern shovelnose ray, Aptychotrema rostrata (Shaw & Nodder, 1794), from Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. Marine and Freshwater Research 53, 583589.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lavín, M.F. and Marinone, S.G. (2003) An overview of the physical oceanography of the Gulf of California. In Velasco Fuentes, O.U., Sheinbaum, J. and Ochoa, J. (eds) Nonlinear processes in geophysical fluid dynamics. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp. 173204.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lutton, B.V., George, J.S., Murrin, C.R., Fileti, L.A. and Callard, I.P. (2005) The elasmobranch ovary. In Hamlett, W.C. (ed.) Reproductive biology and phylogeny of chondrichthyes: shark, batoids and chimaeras. Volume 3 Enfield, NH: Science Publishers, Inc, pp. 237283.Google Scholar
Márquez-Farías, J.F. (2002) The artisanal ray fishery in the Gulf of California: development, fisheries research and management issues. Shark News (IUCN Shark Specialist Group) 14, 1213.Google Scholar
Márquez-Farías, J.F. (2007) Reproductive biology of shovelnose guitarfish Rhinobatos productus from the eastern Gulf of California México. Marine Biology 151, 14451454.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Márquez-Farías, J.F. and Blanco-Parra, M.P. (2006) Rayas. In Arreguin-Sánchez, F., Beléndez-Moreno, L., Méndez-Gómez-Humarán, I., Solana-Sansores, R. and Rangel-Dávalos, C. (eds) Sustentabilidad y Pesca Responsable en México, Evaluación y Manejo. México: Instituto Nacional de la Pesca, pp. 303319.Google Scholar
Marshall, L.J., White, W.T. and Potter, I.C. (2007) Reproductive biology and diet of the southern fiddler ray, Trygonorrhina fasciata (Batoidea: Rhinobatidae), an important trawl bycatch species. Marine and Freshwater Research 58, 104115.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perez-Mellado, J. and Findley, L.T. (1985) Evaluación de la ictiofauna acompañante del camarón capturado en las costas de Sonora y norte de Sinaloa, México. In Yáñez-Arancibia, A. (ed.) Recursos pesqueros potenciales de México: la pesca acompañante del camarón. Mexico D.F.: Instituto Ciencias del Marinas y Limnología and Instituto Nacional de Pesca., pp. 201254.Google Scholar
Pratt, H.L. and Tanaka, S. (1994) Sperm storage in male elasmobranch: a description and survey. Journal of Morphology 219, 297308.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Soto-Mardones, L., Marinone, S.G. and Parés-Sierra, A. (1999) Time and spatial variability of sea surface temperature in the Gulf of California. Ciencias Marinas 25, 130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stevens, J.D., Bonfil, R., Dulvy, N.K. and Walker, P.A. (2000) The effects of fishing on sharks, rays, and chimaeras (chondrichthyans), and the implications for marine ecosystems. ICES Journal of Marine Science 57, 476494.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Villavicencio-Garayzar, C. (1995) Biología reproductiva de la guitarra pinta, Zapteryx exasperata (Pisces: Rhinobatidae), en Bahía Almejas, Baja California Sur, México. Ciencias Marinas 21, 141153.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walker, T.I. (2005) Reproduction in fisheries science. In Hamlett, W.C. (ed.) Reproductive biology and phylogeny of chondrichthyes: sharks, batoids and chimaeras. Enfield, NH: Science Publishers, Inc, pp. 81129.Google Scholar
Wenbin, Z. and Shuyuan, Q. (1993) Reproductive biology of the guitarfish, Rhinobatos hynnicephalus. Environmental Biology of Fishes 38, 8193.CrossRefGoogle Scholar