J Fish Biol
May 2024
Round rays (family: Urotrygonidae) are commonly caught as by-catch by shrimp trawl fisheries in the tropical eastern Pacific (TEP). However, little information on their life history and catch species composition exists for most round ray species, preventing the evaluation of the impact of fishing on their populations. The mean size at sexual maturity (DW), seasonal variation by maturity stages, and fecundity for two round ray species caught during shrimp trawl research cruises in the south-eastern Gulf of California (northern TEP) were estimated using a multi-model approach and inference for the first time, to determine the part of the population of each species that is being affected by shrimp trawling.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe blue shark (Prionace glauca) is the most commonly caught species of Elasmobranchii at the entrance to the Gulf of California. Although fins are the primary target commodity, the entire organism is consumed. This study examined the concentration of Hg and Se in muscle and liver to understand the antagonistic process that occurs between these two elements within the organism.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Environ Manage
July 2023
The interactions between local tides and river discharges are crucial in the processes related to the recruitment of mangrove propagules in estuarine systems. This investigation aimed to determine the causes of the recent natural recruitment and expansion of Laguncularia racemosa in mudflats within an ephemeral inlet in Mexico. We conducted a fluvial and coastal geomorphology assessment with spaceborne and UAV-based images.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this study, the concentrations of Cd and Hg were measured in muscle of juvenile individuals at an importan fishing ground in southeastern Gulf of California to assess the health risk to human consumers considering elemental levels and rate of shark consumption in NW Mexico. Twenty-eight individuals were sampled in September 2019. Quantification of Hg was made by cold vapor-atomic absorption spectrophotometry, analyses of Cd were made by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe presence of microplastics has been reported in the marine environment and these pollutants have also been reported in food webs. Information about the presence of microplastics in the Haller's Round Ray (Urobatis halleri) and bottom sediments off the east coast of the Gulf of California is non-existent. The digestive tracts of individuals of this species and sediment samples were examined for plastic particles in this region.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlastic particle occurrence in the digestive tracts of fishes from a tropical estuarine system in the Gulf of California was investigated. A total of 1095 fish were analysed, representing 15 species. In total 1384 particles of plastic debris were recovered from the gastrointestinal tracts of 552 specimens belonging to 13 species, and all consisted of threads, the majority of which were small microplastics (0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVertebral microchemistry recently allowed to infer the migration patterns of the scalloped hammerhead shark Sphyrna lewini in the Mexican Pacific, however conclusions regarding the movements of reproductive females were hindered by the small sample size. Considering that S. lewini is a placental viviparous species, maternal supply of nutrients to the embryos might influence their vertebral microchemistry while in utero and provide intrinsic markers of the pregnant female environmental histories.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWith the aim of assessing health risk to shark consumers, cadmium, mercury, and selenium were measured in muscle of Sphyrna lewini from four coastal states (Baja California Sur, Sinaloa, Nayarit, and Colima) in western Mexico. According to length of specimens, three age modes were found: juveniles and neonates (the majority of the individuals), preadults and adults. Average concentrations (μg g dry weight) in all the studied individuals followed the order cadmium (0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe age of 296 juvenile scalloped hammerhead sharks Sphyrna lewini caught by several fisheries in the Mexican Pacific Ocean from March 2007 to September 2017 were estimated from growth band counts in thin-sectioned vertebrae. Marginal-increment analysis (MIA) and centrum-edge analysis (CEA) were used to verify the periodicity of formation of the growth bands, whereas elemental profiles obtained from LA-ICP-MS transect scans in vertebrae of 15 juveniles were used as an alternative approach to verify the age of the species for the first time. Age estimates ranged from 0 to 10+ years (42-158.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe assessed human health risk due to mercury (Hg) concentrations in fish from three coastal lagoons (Urías, Huizache, and Teacapán) in the SE Gulf of California. We also determined Hg distribution in muscle and liver of analyzed ichthyofauna and compared the results among studied areas according to tissue, season, and lagoon system by using multivariate analyses. Levels of Hg in most of the analyzed fish followed the sequence liver > muscle.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe determined the levels of Cd and Pb in liver and muscle of demersal fish from three lagoon systems (Urías, Huizache, and Teacapán) in the SE Gulf of California with the purpose of comparing the studied metals in fish from the three ecosystems and to assess the potential human health risk. Considering the number of individuals, the sequence of fish abundance was Teacapán > Huizache > Urías. Length and size at maturity of collected species showed that 76.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe Panama grunt is an abundant and commercially important species in the southeastern Gulf of California, but the research undertaken on this species is scarce despite its ecological and economic importance. We studied the feeding habits of Panama grunt through stomach content analyses as a first step towards understanding the biology of this species in the study area. Our results indicate that the Panama grunt is a benthic predator throughout its life cycle and feeds mainly on infaunal crustaceans.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFScientificWorldJournal
October 2014
The composition and seasonal changes of the fish assemblage in a coastal lagoon system in southeastern Gulf of California were assessed from December 2001 to July 2005. A total of 20,877 organisms belonging to 191 species and 47 families were analyzed. We determined that almost all the species inhabiting the system were found; however some rare species were not captured in our study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMean Cd trend in the muscle of omnivorous (O), planktivorous (P), benthopelagic-carnivorous (BPC), and benthic carnivorous (BC) fish of one lagoon of NW Mexico was BPC > BC > P > O (0.89, 0.59, 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSeventeen sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus; 166-246 cm long) and 13 striped marlin (Tetrapturus audax; 159-254 cm long) specimens from the southern Gulf of California were analyzed for As, Cd, Hg, and Pb concentrations. More than 20% of the As and Cd levels exceeded the guideline levels of the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA study was made in 11,314 school-age children to determine the prevalence of streptococcus pyogenes group A. The children studied belonged to a low socioeconomic group of one of the political boroughs of the Federal District. The prevalence found was 6.
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