198 
Fishery Bulletin 108(2) 
r 2 <0.01), and taxonomic diversity (,F=0.16, P= 0.69, 
r 2 = 0.01). 
Excluding order-level larvae and unidentified larvae, 
unidentified engraulids dominated our collections and 
represented approximately 50% of the total (overall) 
catch (Table 3). Engraulid larvae were present year- 
round and likely comprised several commonly occurring 
species in the region, including Anchoa hepsetus, A. na- 
suta, A. mitchilli, and Engraulis eurystole. No attempt 
was made to examine these fishes beyond the family 
level because many were relatively small (<10 mm) and 
damaged, and engraulid identifications are problem- 
atic in our region (Farooqi et al., 2006a). Other taxa 
that represented over 1% of the overall catch included 
Cynoscioti arenarius (7.5%), Chloroscombrus chrysurus 
(5.4%), Micropogonias undulatus (4.4%), Brevoortia pa- 
tronus (3.8%), unidentified Gobiidae (3.6%), unidentified 
Sciaenidae (2.8%), unidentified Ophidiidae (2.5%), Sym- 
phurus spp. (2.1%), Menticirrhus spp. (1.2%), unidenti- 
fied Clupeidae (1.2%), Syacium spp. (1.2%), and Etropus 
crossotus (1.0%). 
Larval fish specimens collected during the survey 
represented 58 different families. Larvae belonging to 
22 of these families could not be identified beyond the 
family level, usually because published descriptions of 
representative species in our region are either lacking 
or are insufficient to discern between different species 
within the family (e.g., Gerreidae, Sparidae, Haemu- 
lidae, Echeneidae, Labridae, Scorpaenidae). Several 
families were well represented with numerous species 
or genera, including Ophichthidae (11 identified spe- 
cies), Sciaenidae (9 species), Carangidae (7 species), 
Myctophidae (6 genera), Paralichthyidae (5 genera), and 
Clupeidae (5 species). Overall, the dominant families 
collected during our survey (e.g., Engraulidae, Sciaeni- 
dae, Carangidae, and Clupeidae) are the same as those 
from previous surveys in the general vicinity (Table 
3). In general, the taxonomic richness observed in our 
survey falls between that found in surveys of shorter 
duration and in limited spatial-scale surveys (e.g., Wil- 
liams, 1983; Rakocinski et al., 1996) and from SEAMAP 
surveys that encompass a larger area and longer (20 
years) time scales (ENTRIX, 2006). 
Seasonal patterns were observed for most of the domi- 
nant taxa collected (Fig. 4). Lutjanus campechanus and 
Chloroscombrus chrysurus were collected only during the 
summer periods ( June-October). Similarly, Sciaenops 
ocellatus larvae were collected only during late summer 
(September-October). In contrast, Citharichthys spilop- 
terus was collected in almost every sampling event, in- 
dicating year-round spawning or extended 
pelagic larval durations. Although sev- 
eral species had winter peaks, none were 
present exclusively during winter months. 
Brevoortia patronus and Paralichthys spp., 
for example, peaked in concentration dur- 
ing November-December, but were also 
collected in fall-spring. Similar patterns 
were observed for Elops saurus and Micro- 
pogonias undulatus (late summer-winter) 
and Peprilus burti and Leiostomus xan- 
thurus (late summer-spring). Etrumeus 
teres differed in that larvae were collected 
during winter-spring periods. Most of the 
dominant taxa, however, were collected 
primarily during the late spring-late 
summer months (May-October), such as 
Myrophis punctatus, Harengula jaguana, 
Opisthonema oglinum, Centropristis spp., 
Diplectrum spp., Serraniculus pumilio, De- 
capterus punctatus , Auxis spp., Euthynnus 
alletteratus, Scomberomorus maculatus, 
Peprilus alepidotus, Syacium spp., ger- 
reids, and microdesmids. The remaining 
taxa ( Cynoscion arenarius, C. nothus, 
Larimus fasciatus, labrids, and Etropus 
crossotus) were collected during the same 
period, but inclusive of the early spring 
months (March-April). 
Larval concentrations among the domi- 
nant taxa varied widely throughout the 
survey period (Fig. 4). Several taxa were 
present in low numbers throughout the 
survey. For example, mean densities of E. 
saurus, O. oglinum, Diplectrum spp., S. 
-*-1993-2003 Mean 
♦ 2004 
■ 2005 
• 2006 
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC 
Month 
Figure 2 
Mean monthly temperature observations (depth-integrated) at the 
ichthyoplankton sampling station and the 10-year average temperature 
(1993-2003). Sampling station means are derived from temperature 
profile observations recorded by the Bedford Institute of Oceanography 
Net Environmental Sampling System (BIONESS). The 10-year mean 
was determined from near-surface (0.6 m depth) temperature observa- 
tions (T ) recorded by an oceanographic buoy located approximately 
54 km west of the sampling station. The plotted depth-integrated 
temperature estimates (T-) were calculated through the relation ship 
T. = 0.90*77 + 2.37. 
