In documenting a suspected pre-spawning aggregation ( PSA ) site near Key West, Florida, ( BTT ) scientists made significant progress during the 2023- 24 bonefish spawning season. In addition to its earlier investigations in the Upper Keys, where BTT documented a bonefish PSA in 2023, BTT’s studies in the Lower Florida Keys is a continuation of its earlier work. The finding, which was the first of its type in Florida waters, is a good sign that the species will recover after years of decline.
For their conservation, BTT President and CEO Jim McDuffie said,” Finding these coastal areas where bonefish college by the tens of thousands before migrating onshore to reproduce in deep water is essential. Our research team will work with our state and federal partners to ensure that these sites are protected, ensuring a good prospect for one of Florida’s most recognizable seafood species as they continue to be identified.
With the assistance of Florida Keys fish guides, BTT Florida Keys Initiative Director Dr. Ross Boucek and his team tagged 44 bonefish with sound transmissions from the Marquesas to Sawyer Key over the course of the 2023- 2024 bonefish spawning season, which lasts from October to April. Additionally, BTT scientists installed 37 sound receivers on the reef system to keep track of and track bonefish hatching movements.
” We documented seven spawning activities during the 2023- 2024 reproductive time”, said Dr. Boucek. ” Four bonefish tagged with historical detail measuring keywords spawned during these activities, three of the four bass recorded maximum depths of 332 feet, 310 feet, 302 feet. On its first probable reproductive test or false reproductive effort, the third fish recorded a maximum depth of 180 feet. Between the Upper Key hatching site and the suspected spawning site close to Key West, and with the recorded reproductive activities in The Bahamas, the recorded reproductive depth of about 300 feet is consistent with the recorded reproductive level.
From its past work in Florida and The Bahamas, BTT knows how bonefish breed. Bonefish fly 70 miles or more from their household ranges to coastal PSA sites during full and new sky cycles, which occur from fall through first spring, where they prepare to reproduce by porpoising at the surface and consuming air to complete their swim bladders. They go abroad at evening and swim hundreds of feet before returning to the surface. Their snorkel vessels expand, causing them to release their eggs and sperm, according to some. The eggs hatch in about 24 hours following conception, and the pupae fall in ocean currents for between 41 and 71 time before settling in deep sand- or mud-bottom bays where they develop into young bonefish.
In the Upper Keys, BTT continues to work with state and federal partners to make sure the first bonefish PSA that has been documented is adequately protected. In order to facilitate the potential expansion of a Marine Protected Area to include the spawning area, BTT is working to provide the PSA in Biscayne National Park with higher resolution spatial information.
According to Dr. Boucek, “BTT received an infrastructure loan of$ 80, 000 to provide tracking equipment to build a fine-scale tracking array at the aggregation site.” The objective is to find out more about the locations where the spawning bonefish prefer to inhabit and whether they prefer to use living coral habitats.
In Biscayne Bay, Dr. Boucek and his team deployed an array of receivers in the fall of 2023 and tagged seven bonefish. Additionally, they continue to monitor the 45 bonefish that were previously tagged in the area.
Our long-term objectives are to preserve the reproductive cycle of the Florida Keys ‘ growing bonefish, according to Dr. Boucek. We still need to know where bonefish spawn in the Keys, what dangers might those spawning fish face, where their larvae go, and what habitats the young people need to ensure that our new population can reach its full potential.
