NOTE Bolden: Long-distance movement of Epinephelus stnatus 



643 



75 



Scale 1 2,300,000 



Uilii 10 5 10 n 30 «0 50 Milts 



. -I— H — r' — I — H — rH i' 



HUDMiel 10 10 20 30 «0 bO 6D ?0 80 Kilomiir.s 



■25 



Exuma Cay x" . 

 Lands Sea Park\' a> 



/* \;. Exuma Cays 



'ttSt^niel Cay 



CAT ISLAND 



Conception /.^' 



i 



SAN SALVADOR 



RUM CAY 



LONG ISLAND 



Figure 1 



Map of the central Bahamas showing locations of tag and return sites of Nassau gi'ouper iEpniephe/us striatus). Longitude is west; 

 latitude is north. The Exuma Cay Land and Sea Park is enclosed by a box. The site where the fish was captured, tagged, and 

 released is designated by an arrow (tl; recapture site — denoted as the "south point aggregations site by Colin, 1992— by a start*!. 

 Other possible E. striatus spawning sites noted by Bahamian government, local fishermen, and scientific literature are designated 

 by a cross (+). The 500-fathom depth contour, as determined by NOAA chart no, 23605, is designated by a solid line. This figure is 

 modified with permission from a map produced by Department of Lands and Surveys for the Government of the Bahamas B.L.S, 

 1100. 



Mean monthly water temperatures at CMRC dock were 

 23,94°C ±1.41 for February 1998. and .v = 24.68°C ±0.75 

 for February 1989. Mean water temperature for the full 

 moon period from 11 February 1998 to date of capture 

 (16 February 1998) was 23.83°C ±0.63. The wide standard 

 deviation for the February 1998 monthly mean was due to 

 a 7-day (18-24 February) period of warm water tempera- 

 ture (>25°C every day). 



Cartwright. Capt. A. 1998. Personal commun. P.O. Box CB 

 11039, Nassau, Bahamas. 



Discussion 



Site fidelity for the recaptured Nassau grouper was 46 days; 

 and perhaps a year for the three Nassau grouper at large, 

 tagged in 1997 and resighted in 1998. Sexual maturity for 

 E. striatus is reached at about 42 cm SL and 40 cm SL, for 

 males and females respectively (Colin et al.. 1987). thus the 

 two larger fish seen again in 1998 were theoretically sex- 

 ually mature. These two fish should have joined a spawn- 

 ing aggregation: they had either left the area and returned 

 "home," or they were remarkably steadfast to that reef. 



