Sand seatrout, continued 



Range 



Overall : The range of the sand seatrout is limited to the 

 coastal and shelf waters of the Gulf of Mexico, extend- 

 ing from Florida Bay to the Bay of Campeche. It is 

 considered rare in the Bay of Campeche reef areas, 

 and in the lower mangrove areas of the lower west 

 coast of Florida (Fischer 1978, NOAA 1985, Shipp 

 1986). 



Within Study Area : The sand seatrout is common in 

 estuarine and nearshore waters of the Gulf of Mexico, 

 with the exception of the lower mangrove areas of the 

 lower west coast of Florida (Shipp 1 986) (Table 5.34). 



Life Mode 



The sand seatrout is estuarine-dependent, and spends 

 most of its life in the estuaries and nearshore waters of 

 the Gulf of Mexico. Eggs are pelagic and buoyant 

 (Johnson 1978). Larvae are pelagic. Juveniles and 

 adults are estuarine and demersal (Benson 1 982, Ditty 

 and Shaw 1 994). This is a schooling fish, often forming 

 groups with spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosu$. 

 Its activity patterns tend to be diurnal (Vetter 1977). 



Habitat 



Type : The sand seatrout is truly estuarine dependent, 

 but can be found in environments ranging from marine 

 to estuarine. Larvae have been collected in inshore to 

 midshelf waters in depths ranging from 5 to 70 m, with 

 most occurring between 1 0-25 m (Cowan 1 985, Cowan 

 and Shaw 1988, Cowan et al. 1989). Shlossman and 

 Chittenden (1981) report spring spawned larvae use 

 estuarine marsh habitat, while late summer spawned 

 larvae utilize the inshore gulf waters as nurseries. 

 Larvae appearto have some surface orientation (Cowan 

 1985, Cowan and Shaw 1988), but become increas- 

 ingly demersal with size (Ditty et al. 1 991 ). Adults and 

 juveniles prefer nearshore and inshore areas and are 

 rarely taken in waters deeper than 55 m (Miller 1964, 

 Kelley 1 965. Warren and Sutter 1 982), but adults have 

 been caught offshore as deep as 1 10 m. According to 

 Shipp (1986) "this fine food fish abounds in areas 

 around passes and channels." Aggregations of 0.5 to 

 1 .0 kg sand seatrout are known to occur in deep holes 

 and over oyster reefs during the summer in estuaries. 

 Gallaway and Strawn (1974) stated that oyster reefs 

 and water depths greater than 1 m were preferred by 

 adults. Larger sand seatrout (1.5 kg) are known to 

 aggregate around offshore oil rigs (Shipp 1986). 



Substrate : Juveniles prefer muddy bottoms, while adults 

 are found over most bottom types in estuaries and 

 nearshore Gulf areas. Larvae and juveniles prefer 

 grass beds and marsh areas, with soft organic bottoms 

 (Conner and Truesdale 1972, Benson 1982). 



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