A visual census of a four year old artificial reef in the Bahia de Amatique off Guatemala\u27s Atlantic coast indicates a substantial standing number of fishes. The fish fauna is comprised chiefly of juvenile grunts (Haemulon aurolineatum; 7.39/m2) accounting for the reef\u27s low species diversity (H\u27 = 0.68). A considerable portion of the assemblage is composed of commercially exploitable adults of Lutjanus griseus (0.38/m2) and Haemulon plumieri (0.03/m2). The proximate grassbeds have large populations of juveniles and small adults of all the commercially exploitable species. Further development of the reef is indicated providing the grassbed biotope remains  healthy  and fishing pressure does not become excessive

Bortone, S.A.

Davis, W.P.

Nester, R.D.

Shipp, R.L.

English

Aquila Digital Community (University of Southern Mississippi, USM)

Northeast Gulf ScienceVolume 10Number 1 Number 1 Article 412-1988Artificial Reef Development Along the AtlanticCoast of GuatemalaS.A. BortoneUniversity of West FloridaR.L. ShippUniversity of South AlabamaW.P. DavisU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyR.D. NesterU.S. Army Corps of EngineersDOI: 10.18785/negs.1001.04Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/gomsThis 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 Scienceby an authorized editor of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact Joshua.Cromwell@usm.edu.Recommended CitationBortone, S., R. Shipp, W. Davis and R. Nester. 1988. Artificial Reef Development Along the Atlantic Coast of Guatemala. NortheastGulf Science 10 (1).Retrieved from https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol10/iss1/4Northeast Gulf Science Vol. 10, No. 1, December 1988 p. 45·48 ARTIFICIAL REEF DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE ATLANTIC COAST OF GUATEMALA S.A. Bertone, R.L. Shipp, W.P. Davis, and R.D. Nester (SAB) Biology Department University of West Florida, Pensacola, FL 32514 (USA) (RLS) Department of Biological Science University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36608 (USA) (WPD) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Sabine Island, Gulf Breeze, FL 32561 (USA) (RON) U.S. Army corp of Engineers P.O. Box 2288, Mobile, AL 36628 (USA) ABSTRACT: A visual census of a four year old artificial reef in the Bahia de Amatique off Guatemala's Atlantic coast indicates a substantial standing number of fishes. The fish fauna is comprised chiefly of juvenile grunts (Haemulon aurolineatum; 7.39/m2) accounting for the reef's low species diversity (H' = 0.68). A considerable portion of the assemblage is composed of commercially exploitable adults of Lutjanus griseus (0.38/m2) and Haemulon plumieri (0.03/m2). The proximate grassbeds have large populations of juveniles and small adults of all the commercially exploitable species. Further development of the reef is indicated providing the grassbed biotope remains "healthy" and fishing pressure does not become excessive. EXTRACTO: Un censo visual de un arrecife artificial que tiene custro a'ilos en Ia Bahia de Amatique frente a Ia costa Atlantica de Guatemala indica un numero cuantioso de peces establecidos. La ictiofauna esta comprendida principalmente de Hemulones juveniles (Haemulon auro/ineatum; 7.39/m2) justificando Ia poca diversidad de especies en el arrecife (H' = 0.68). Una porcion considerable del grupo esta compuesta de adultos de Lutjanus griseus (0.38/m2) y Haemu/on plumieri (0.03/m 2), los cuales sirven en explotacion comercial. Las praderas de gram a cercanas tienen poblaciones grandes de juveniles y adultos pequenos representando todas las especies de uso comercial. No podemos rechazar Ia hipotesis de que desarrollo adicional o explotacion del arrecife deberia continuar. Desarrollo adicional del arrecife podrfa ser aconsejaable siempre que el biotopo de las praderas permanesca "sano" y que Ia presion debida a Ia explotacion pesquera no se vuelva excesiva. Naturally occurring nearshore coral-reef and hard-bottom biotopes are sparse along Guatemala's Atlantic coast. To improve nearshore fishing for reef and hard-bottom-associated fish species, an artificial reef was estab-lished in 1982 in the Bahia de Amatique, about 15 km NW of Puerto Barrios, Guatemala. In their review of artificial reef research and recommendations for future research priorities, Bohnsack and Sutherland (1985) indicated that future artificial reef research should emphasize small, nearshore artificial reefs and iden-tify the economic and social impact of 45 these structures. Currently there are few studies examining the impact and effec-tiveness of artificial reefs in tropical, inshore estuarine areas (cf, Stanton, Wilber, and Murray, 1985) and none off Guatemala. Fast (1974) and Fast and Pagan (1976) presented some insight into the efficacy of artificial reef construction in these areas off Puerto Rico but much work remains regarding: accurate deter-minations of their standing biomass; their utility in improving local fisheries; their impact on community productivity in proximate biotopes, etc. In 1986, four years after deployment 1Bortone et al.: Artificial Reef Development Along the Atlantic Coast of GuatemalaPublished by The Aquila Digital Community, 198846 S. A. Bortone, R. L Shipp, W. P. Davis and R. D. Nester of an extensive artificial reef bff Guate-mala's Atlantic coast, the opportunity became available to assess the reef-associated fish assemblage and to observe its impact on the local economy. During an assessment of the artificial reef, trawl surveys were conducted in a proximate grass bed community where juveniles of the adult fishes, which usually inhabit reefs and hard-bottom biotopes, often occur (Bertone and Williams, 1986). This report constitutes the first of a regular, continuing series of assessments of this artificial reef and its potential impact on the local economy. METHODS Description of the Study Area The reef is located in the Bahia de Amatique, 15 km NW of Puerto Barrios, Guatemala, C.A. (Fig. 1). The bay receives freshwater from the Lago de lzabai-Rio Dulce drainage. The reef, composed chiefly of discarded automobile and I I I I I I i I I I I i I I I I . ~-,.--- .... _~ .. ·.·.· BELIZE Artificial Reef .~-.--Bollia d1 Gracioso · .. . ::r::;: ·· ...... // /' /' .. GUATEMALA // HONDURAS ,.// / 10 Km .·.: Figure 1. Location of the artificial reef and the grass beds (Bahia de Graciosa) in the Bahia de Amatique off Guatemala's Atlantic coast. truck bodies, heavy construction beams, large appliances, and other large metal refuse objects, is located at 7.5-8.5 m depth. The total area encompassed by the reef is approximately 2000 m2 and reef height varies from 1 to 3 m. Other parameters associated with the reef at the time of this survey were: visibility = 7-8 m; temperature = 29-30 °C; distance from shore = 4-5 km; bottom type = sand; salinity was variable due to local rain and runoff. Nearby (5 km E) is the Bahia de Graciosa, an extensive grass bed community comprised chiefly of Thalassia testudinata, only 1 to 2 m deep. Sampling Techniques Visual assessments of the fish fauna were conducted on the reef from 8 to 11 September 1986 using a modifica-tion of the Stationary Visual Census (or "Point Count") method of Bohnsack and Bannerot (1986). Divers using SCUBA, identified fish species and counted the number of individuals from the center position of a circle with a radius of 4.6 m (total area observed per sample = 65.7 m2) for five minutes. Divers positioned themselves on or near the reef and slowly turned at the center of the imagi-nary circle, listing fish species and the number of individuals on a sheet of roughened white plastic. A total of 48, five-minute visual "point counts" were conducted during daylight hours (10:30 to 16:00, local time). Standard Length (i.e., SL) of captured specimens was measured from the anterior tip of the upper jaw to the middle of the hypural plate. To evaluate the possibility of the Bahia de Graciosa serving as a recruit-ment area for the reef, 10 five-minute samples of the fish fauna were made using a 4-m otter trawl. 2Gulf of Mexico Science, Vol. 10 [1988], No. 1, Art. 4https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol10/iss1/4DOI: 10.18785/negs.1001.04RESULTS Visual Census Twenty-eight species were recorded during the 48 visual censuses (Table 1). The species diversity (i.e., Shannon-Wiener H') of the fish community was relatively low (0.68) due to the predom-inance of juvenile grunts comprised primarily of Haemulon aurolineatum (7.39/m2). Other species abundant on the reef were: Odontoscion dentex, Lutjanus griseus, and Decapterus sp. Of the com-mercially important species, Lutjanus griseus (0.38/m2) and Haemulon p/umieri (0:03/m2) were of sufficient size and number to contribute substantially to the local fishery with other lutjanid species Guatemala artificial reef development 47 also contributing to the fishery. A non-random sample of 10 L. griseus speared from the reef by a local fisherman had a mean length (SL) of 209 mm (minimum SL = 160, maximum SL = 250; standard deviation = 26.4). While the total number of species observed during the assess-ment surveys was low, four additional species were observed on the reef: Gin-glymostoma cirratum, Epinephelus cruentatum, Rypticus saponaceous, and Echeneis neucratoides. Trawl Survey Trawl samples from the Bahia de Graciosa indicated that most species constituting the fauna of the reef also occurred in the grass beds as juveniles Table 1. Summary of reef census data from 48 visual, 5-min. point counts (mean = average number of fish observed per visual census; sd = standard deviation; min-max = minimum and maximum number of individuals of species observed; No./m2 = estimated number of individuals per square meter). Species mean sd min-max No./m2 Haemulon aurolineatum* 485.21 455.89 50.2000 7.39 Odontoscion dentex 43.69 81.90 ().500 0.67 Lutjanus griseus 24.73 26.12 ().150 0.38 Decapterus sp. 12.02 34.27 0-200 0.19 Haemulon plumier/ 1.65 2.22 0-10 0.03 Caranx chrysos 1.65 5.98 0-30 0.03 Scarus croicensis 1.60 1.99 0-11 0.02 Haemulon parrai 1.19 1.68 0-8 0.02 Abudefduf saxati/us 1.17 1.52 0-6 0.02 Selene vomer 1.13 4.72 0-31 0.01 Hypoplectrus puel/a 0.54 0.68 0·2 0.01 Haemulon bonariense 0.46 0.99 0-5 0.01 Scombermorus rega/is 0.42 1.83 0-12 0.01 Serranus flaviventrus 0.42 1.13 0-6 0.01 Gerres cineereus 0.23 0.72 0-4 <0.01 Anisotremus virginicus 0.10 0.37 0-2 <0.01 Coryphopterus sp. 0.15 0.62 0-4 <0.01 Chaetodon cap/stratus 0.08 0.28 0-1 <0.01 Sphyraena barracuda 0.06 0.24 0-1 <0.01 Pomacentrus fuscus 0.04 0.20 0-1 <0.01 Lutjanus synagris 0.04 0.20 0-1 <0.01 Equetus acuminatus 0.04 0.20 0-1 <0.01 unident. blenniid 0.02 0.14 0-1 <0.01 Seriola sp. 0.02 0.14 0-1 <0.01 Lutjanus jocu 0.02 0.14 0-1 <0.01 Chaetodipterus faber 0.02 0.14 0-1 <0.01 Lutjanus apodus 0.02 0.14 0-1 <0.01 Pomacanthus paru 0.02 0.14 ().1 <0.01 • H. aurolineatum may include juveniles of other Haemulon species 3Bortone et al.: Artificial Reef Development Along the Atlantic Coast of GuatemalaPublished by The Aquila Digital Community, 198848 S. A. Bortone, R. L Shipp, W. P. Davis and R. D. Nester or small adults. This was especially true for lutjanids. Several species common to the grassbeds, however, were not ob-served on the reef (e.g., Syngnathus sp., Archosargus rhomboidalis, Ocyurus chrysurus, Nicholsina usta, and Sphoeroides testudineus). Most of these species have strong affinities to a grass-bed biocenosis but the absence of 0. chrysurus from the reef is perplexing as adults of this species are often associ-ated with such structures (Bartone and Williams, 1986). DISCUSSION Local fishermen, using hand spears (without the use of SCUBA), "Bahamian"-style fishtraps and hook-and-line, fish the reef dailyhom Puerto Barrios. Conversa-tions with these fishermen indicate that fishing pressure has been nearly con-stant since deployment of the reef in 1982. Discussions with local officials indicate that future restrictions regard-ing fishing effort are being considered to protect fishery resources on the reef. Our data indicate that under relatively heavy fishing pressure a reasonable standing communlty of commercially useful species persists. This is perhaps due to the readily available, proximate source of juvenile and small adult lutjanid and haemulid species associated with the grassbeds. It should be noted, however, that more data are needed to determine the exact relationship between these grass bed and artificial reef communities with regard to recruitment. Studies moni-toring movement of fishes between the grass bed and the reef would provide information essential to determining the relationship of these biotopes. Present observations, however, indicate that future expansion and utilization of the reef is in order, providing the grass bed biotope is protected and fishing pressure on the reef does not become excessive. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We thank Gene Wilson, David Dean, Ken Heck, Pam James and especially Gina Cazali for assistance in conducting the surveys. We also thank SeR'or Federico Caracamo and the people of Puerto Barrios for facilitating this pro-ject. Funding was provided by the Sister City program from the City of Mobile, Alabama and the University of South Alabama. LITERATURE CITED Bohnsack, J. A. and S. P. Bannerot. 1986. A stationary visual census technique for quantitatively assessing commun-ity structure of coral reef fishes. U.S. Dep. Cammer., NOAA Tech. Rep. NMFS 41: 1-15. Bohnsack, J. A. and D. L. Sutherland. 1985. Artificial reef research: a review with recommendations for future prior-ities. Bull. Mar. Sci. 30: 11-39. Bartone, S. A. and J. L. Williams. 1986. Species profiles: life histories and environmental requirements of coastal fishes and invertebrates (South Florida)-gray, lane, mutton, and yellowtail snappers. U.S Fish Wild!. Serv. Bioi. Rep. 82(11.52). U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, TR EL-82-4. 18pp. Fast, D. E. 1974. Comparative studies of fish species and their populations on artificial and natural reefs off south-western Puerto Rico. University of Puerto Rico, Dept. Marine Sci., unpub-lished M.S. Thesis. pp. 1-90. Fast, D. E. and F. A. Pagan. 1976. Com-parison of fishes and biomass by trophic levels on artificial and natural reefs off southwestern Puerto Rico. Assoc. Southeast Bioi. Bull. 23:58. Stanton, G., D. Wilber, and A. Murray. 1985. Annotated bib I iography of arti-ficial reef research and management. Florida Sea Grant College, Gainesville. Report No. 7 4: 1-275. 4Gulf of Mexico Science, Vol. 10 [1988], No. 1, Art. 4https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol10/iss1/4DOI: 10.18785/negs.1001.04

Artificial Reef Development Along the Atlantic Coast of Guatemala

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Artificial Reef Development Along the Atlantic Coast of Guatemala

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