Reproductive activity in the checkered snapper, Lutjanus decussatus, off Ishigaki Island, Okinawa

Nanami, Atsushi; Okuzawa, Koichi; Yamada, Hideaki; Suzuki, Nobuaki; Aonuma, Yoshimasa

doi:10.1007/s10228-010-0155-5

Cited by 17 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…From the WoS and OBIS analyses of sub-regions and taxa occurrences it became clear, as in many other marine regions (Hughes, Bellwood & Connolly, 2002), that serious taxonomic and geographic biases are present in marine research in the RYS. Some of this taxonomic bias may stem from the commercial importance of Pisces and Crustacea in Japan, which has resulted in many studies on various species’ lifecycles and aquaculture methodologies (e.g., Hamasaki & Kitada, 2008; Nanami et al, 2010). Research on these topics, while often conducted somewhere in the RYS, generally did not include field observations or sampling information as the focus was more on ex situ analyses and model species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine biodiversity research in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: current status and trends

Reimer

Biondi

Lau

et al. 2019

PeerJ

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Marine biodiversity and derived ecosystem services are critical to the healthy functioning of marine ecosystems, and to human economic and societal well-being. Thus, an understanding of marine biodiversity in different ecosystems is necessary for their conservation and management. Coral reefs in particular are noted for their high levels of biodiversity, and among the world’s coral reefs, the subtropical Ryukyu Islands (RYS; also known as the Nansei Islands) in Japan have been shown to harbor very high levels of marine biodiversity. This study provides an overview of the state of marine biodiversity research in the RYS. First, we examined the amount of English language scientific literature in the Web of Science (WoS; 1995–2017) on six selected representative taxa spanning protists to vertebrates across six geographic sub-regions in the RYS. Our results show clear taxonomic and sub-region bias, with research on Pisces, Cnidaria, and Crustacea to be much more common than on Dinoflagellata, Echinodermata, and Mollusca. Such research was more commonly conducted in sub-regions with larger human populations (Okinawa, Yaeyama). Additional analyses with the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS) records show that within sub-regions, records are concentrated in areas directly around marine research stations and institutes (if present), further showing geographical bias within sub-regions. While not surprising, the results indicate a need to address ‘understudied’ taxa in ‘understudied sub-regions’ (Tokara, Miyako, Yakutane, Amami Oshima), particularly sub-regions away from marine research stations. Second, we compared the numbers of English language scientific papers on eight ecological topics for the RYS with numbers from selected major coral reef regions of the world; the Caribbean (CAR), Great Barrier Reef (GBR), and the Red Sea (RES). As expected, the numbers for all topics in the RYS were well below numbers from all other regions, yet within this disparity, research in the RYS on ‘marine protected areas’ and ‘herbivory’ was an order of magnitude lower than numbers in other regions. Additionally, while manuscript numbers on the RYS have increased from 1995 to 2016, the rate of increase (4.0 times) was seen to be lower than those in the CAR, RES, and GBR (4.6–8.4 times). Coral reefs in the RYS feature high levels of both endemism and anthropogenic threats, and subsequently they contain a concentration of some of the world’s most critically endangered marine species. To protect these threatened species and coral reef ecosystems, more data are needed to fill the research gaps identified in this study.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine biodiversity research in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: current status and trends

Reimer

Biondi

Lau

et al. 2019

PeerJ

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“…Most coral reef fish spawn according to the lunar cycle (Johannes, 1978;Doherty, 1983;Takemura et al, 2004 a;Takemura et al, 2004 b;Nanami et al 2010). The spawn ing pattern of this species has previously been reported in a few coral reef fish, such as butterfly fish (Ralston, 1981).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Erratum: Reproductive biology of nocturnal reef fish Pempheris adusta (Pempheridae) in Okinawa Island, Japan

Koeda

Fukagawa

Ishihar

et al. 2014

Galaxea, Journal of Coral Reef Studies

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Island, and Iriomote Island, respec tively (Koeda et al., 2010a;Koeda et al., 2010b;Koeda et al., 2013a). Addi tionally, another unknown Pempheris species (Fig. 1) named ''Ryukyu hatampo'' in Japanese was recorded inOkinawan water. This species was reidentified to be P.adusta Bleeker, 1877 in our recent advanced research, and clearly distinguished from other Pempherid species by its number of pored lateral-line scales (54-62), scale rows ErrataReproductive biology of nocturnal reef fish Pempheris adusta (Pempheridae) in Okinawa Island, Japan

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“…During non-spawning seasons (between November 2020 and April 2021, and between November and December 2021), underwater observations were conducted around two lunar phases (last-quarter moon and new moon). This was because: (1) preliminary surveys between September and October 2020 revealed the fish aggregations of the two snapper species were found around the last-quarter moon and new moon and (2) Nanami et al (2010) showed that Lutjanus decussatus showed a greater peak of ovary development during the last-quarter moon.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Two snapper species, checkered snapper Lutjanus decussatus (Cuvier, 1828) and blackspot snapper L. fulviflamma (Forsskål, 1775), are important fisheries target species in Okinawan coral reefs ( Akita et al, 2016 ). Nanami et al (2010) indicated the possibility that L. decussatus forms spawning aggregations in this region by clarifying its reproductive biology. The main spawning season was between June and October and clear lunar-synchronized fluctuations in the gonadsomatic index (GSI) of females were found.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spawning aggregations of checkered snapper (Lutjanus decussatus) and blackspot snapper (L. fulviflamma): seasonality, lunar-phase periodicity and spatial distribution within spawning ground

Nanami

2023

PeerJ

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Snappers (family Lutjanidae) are important fisheries target species and some species are known to form spawning aggregations at particular spawning grounds. The present study investigated the ecological characteristics of fish aggregations of two snapper species (checkered snapper Lutjanus decussatus and blackspot snapper L. fulviflamma) that form at a particular site. Specifically, the aims were to clarify (1) seasonality and lunar-phase periodicity of fish aggregation formation, (2) fine-scale spatial distribution of fish density (spatial variations of fish density at intervals of several-tens meters) within the aggregation site, (3) size and age frequency distributions of fishes in the aggregation site, (4) gonad development, (5) to compare fish abundance between inside and outside the aggregation site, and (6) to verify that fish aggregations of the two snapper species were spawning aggregation. Underwater observations using a 600 m × 5 m transect revealed that greater fish abundance of Lutjanus decussatus was found monthly between May and October, and clear positive peaks in the fish abundance were found only around the last-quarter moon. This lunar-related periodicity in the increase of fish abundance was confirmed by a time-series analysis (correlogram). Within the aggregation site, L. decussatus showed a relatively uniform distribution. In contrast, greater fish abundance of L. fulviflamma was found monthly between April and October, and clear positive peaks in the fish abundance were found around the last-quarter moon (April, May, June and October) or new moon (July, August and September). This lunar-related periodicity was also confirmed by correlogram. Lutjanus fulviflamma showed a relatively clumped distribution within the aggregation site. Most females of the two species in the aggregation site had hydrated eggs, indicating that the two species form aggregations for reproduction. The two species, although occurring simultaneously, are considered to form aggregations of conspecifics only. For L. decussatus, average fork length and age of males and females were 229.2 mm and 243.9 mm and 9.4 years and 8.1 years, respectively. For L. fulviflamma, average fork length and age of males and females were 233.9 mm and 246.9 mm and 6.8 years and 8.1 years, respectively. Fish abundance inside the aggregation site was 266.8-fold and 141557.1-fold greater than those outside the aggregation site for L. decussatus and L. fulviflamma, respectively. These results showed that (1) fish aggregation formation of the two snapper species was predictably repeated in particular months and lunar-phase, (2) it was predictably found at the particular site, (3) the fish abundance in the aggregation site markedly exceeded the fish abundance outside the aggregation site, and (4) the two species form aggregations for reproduction. Therefore, it is suggested that the fish aggregations for the two species can be regarded as spawning aggregations.

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Reproductive activity in the checkered snapper, Lutjanus decussatus, off Ishigaki Island, Okinawa

Cited by 17 publications

References 22 publications

Marine biodiversity research in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: current status and trends

Marine biodiversity research in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: current status and trends

Erratum: Reproductive biology of nocturnal reef fish Pempheris adusta (Pempheridae) in Okinawa Island, Japan

Spawning aggregations of checkered snapper (Lutjanus decussatus) and blackspot snapper (L. fulviflamma): seasonality, lunar-phase periodicity and spatial distribution within spawning ground

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