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The Spatial Context Of “Winning” In Mpa Network Design: Location Matters, Andrew S. Kough, Claire B. Paris, Mark J. Butler Iv Jan 2018

The Spatial Context Of “Winning” In Mpa Network Design: Location Matters, Andrew S. Kough, Claire B. Paris, Mark J. Butler Iv

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

(First paragraph) Chollett et al. (2017) make the case that a local network of marine protected areas (MPAs) enhances fisheries for Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) off the coast of Honduras. However, their simulation focused on one ecoregion where self-recruitment is predicted to be among the highest in the Caribbean (Cowen, Paris, & Srinivasan, 2006). The shallow banks and scattered cays of the Honduran-Nicaraguan Rise, separating the Cayman and Colombian basins, create an obstacle to the powerful southern Caribbean jet (Richardson, 2005), fostering an ideal location for topographically steered eddies and larval retention. Local management,whether based on traditional …


Casitas: A Location-Dependent Ecological Trap For Juvenile Caribbean Spiny Lobsters, Panulirus Argus, Benjamin C. Gutzler, Mark J. Butler Iv, Donald C. Behringer Jan 2015

Casitas: A Location-Dependent Ecological Trap For Juvenile Caribbean Spiny Lobsters, Panulirus Argus, Benjamin C. Gutzler, Mark J. Butler Iv, Donald C. Behringer

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Casitas are artificial shelters used by fishers to aggregate Caribbean spiny lobsters (Panulirus argus) for ease of capture. However, casitas may function as an ecological trap for juvenile lobsters if they are attracted to casitas and their growth or mortality is poorer compared with natural shelters. We hypothesized that juvenile lobsters may be at particular risk if attracted to casitas because they are less able than larger individuals to defend themselves, and do not forage far from shelter. We compared the nutritional condition, relative mortality, and activity of lobsters of various sizes in casitas and natural shelters in adult and …


The Effect Of Parental Size On Spermatophore Production, Egg Quality, Fertilization Success, And Larval Characteristics In The Caribbean Spiny Lobster, Panulirus Argus, Mark J. Butler Iv, Alison Macdiarmid, Gaya Gnanalingam Jan 2015

The Effect Of Parental Size On Spermatophore Production, Egg Quality, Fertilization Success, And Larval Characteristics In The Caribbean Spiny Lobster, Panulirus Argus, Mark J. Butler Iv, Alison Macdiarmid, Gaya Gnanalingam

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The average size of spiny lobsters (Decapoda; Palinuridae) has decreased worldwide over the past few decades. Market forces coupled with minimum size limits compel fishers to target the largest individuals. Males are targeted disproportionately as a consequence of sexual dimorphism in spiny lobster size (i.e. males grow larger than females) and because of protections for ovigerous females. Therefore, overexploitation of males has led to sperm limitation in several decapod populations with serious repercussions for reproductive success. In the Caribbean spiny lobster, Panulirus argus, little is known about the effect of reduced male size on fertilization success or the role …


Behavior Constrains The Dispersal Of Long-Lived Spiny Lobster Larvae, Mark J. Butler Iv, Claire B. Paris, Jason S. Goldstein, Hirokazu Matsuda, Robert K. Cowen Jan 2011

Behavior Constrains The Dispersal Of Long-Lived Spiny Lobster Larvae, Mark J. Butler Iv, Claire B. Paris, Jason S. Goldstein, Hirokazu Matsuda, Robert K. Cowen

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Behavior such as ontogenetic vertical migration (OVM) limits the transport of marine larvae with short pelagic larval durations (PLDs), but its effect on the supposed long-distance dispersal of larvae with long PLDs is unknown. We conducted laboratory tests of ontogenetic change in larval phototaxis and examined size-specific patterns of larval distribution in the plankton to characterize OVM in the Caribbean spiny lobster Panulirus argus during its long (6 mo) PLD. We then used a coupled biophysical model to explore the consequences of OVM and hydrodynamics on larval P. argus dispersal in the Caribbean Sea. Larvae reared in the laboratory were …


A Review Of The Lethal Spiny Lobster Virus Pav1 - Ten Years After Its Discovery, Donald C. Behringer, Mark J. Butler Iv, Jeffrey D. Shields Nov 2009

A Review Of The Lethal Spiny Lobster Virus Pav1 - Ten Years After Its Discovery, Donald C. Behringer, Mark J. Butler Iv, Jeffrey D. Shields

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

In 1999, we discovered that juvenile Caribbean spiny lobsters (Panulirus argus) in the Florida Keys were infected with PaV1 (Panulirus argus virus 1), the first naturally occurring pathogenic virus reported from lobsters. The virus profoundly affects their biology and ecology. PaV1 is probably wide-spread in the Caribbean with confirmed infections from the United States (Florida), St Croix, Mexico, and Belize; and anecdotal reports from the Bahamas and Cuba. Mean prevalence in the Florida Keys has been stable since 1999 (5 - 8%), but has risen from 2.7% to 10.9% in Mexico (Puerto Morelos), the only other country where …


Habitat-Based Intraguild Predation By Caribbean Reef Octopus Octopus Briareus On Juvenile Caribbean Spiny Lobster Panulirus Argus, Mark J. Butler Iv, Jennifer A. Lear Jul 2009

Habitat-Based Intraguild Predation By Caribbean Reef Octopus Octopus Briareus On Juvenile Caribbean Spiny Lobster Panulirus Argus, Mark J. Butler Iv, Jennifer A. Lear

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Intraguild predation occurs when species simultaneously compete for resources and interact as predator and prey, which describes the interaction between juvenile Caribbean spiny lobster Panulirus argus and Caribbean reef octopus Octopus briareus in the Florida Keys, USA. Octopuses are notorious predators of decapod crustaceans, and their use of crevice shelters suggests that they may also compete for shelter with their lobster prey. Lobsters use mainly chemical cues to detect and avoid octopus, so we hypothesized that the negative association between these species may be as much the consequence of avoidance of a superior competitor as it is of direct predation. …


The Epidemiological Status Of Pav1, And The Effects Of Infection On Caribbean Spiny Lobster (Panulirus Argus) Condition, Olfaction, And Predation Risk, Donald C. Behringer, Mark J. Butler Iv, Jeffrey D. Shields Jan 2009

The Epidemiological Status Of Pav1, And The Effects Of Infection On Caribbean Spiny Lobster (Panulirus Argus) Condition, Olfaction, And Predation Risk, Donald C. Behringer, Mark J. Butler Iv, Jeffrey D. Shields

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Patterns Of Spiny Lobster (Panulirus Argus) Postlarval Recruitment In The Carribbean: A Crtr Project, Mark J. Butler Iv, Angela M. Mojica, Eloy Sosa-Cordero, Marines Millet, Paul Sanchez-Navarro, Miguel A. Maldonado, Juan Posada, Bladimir Rodriguez, Carlos M. Rivas, Adrian Oviedo, Marcio Arrone, Martha Prada, Nick Bach, Nilda Jimenez, Maria Del Carmen Garcia-Rivas, Kirah Forman, Donald C. Behringer Jr., Thomas Matthews, Claire Paris, Robert Cowen Jan 2009

Patterns Of Spiny Lobster (Panulirus Argus) Postlarval Recruitment In The Carribbean: A Crtr Project, Mark J. Butler Iv, Angela M. Mojica, Eloy Sosa-Cordero, Marines Millet, Paul Sanchez-Navarro, Miguel A. Maldonado, Juan Posada, Bladimir Rodriguez, Carlos M. Rivas, Adrian Oviedo, Marcio Arrone, Martha Prada, Nick Bach, Nilda Jimenez, Maria Del Carmen Garcia-Rivas, Kirah Forman, Donald C. Behringer Jr., Thomas Matthews, Claire Paris, Robert Cowen

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

As part of the Coral Reef Targeted Research (CRTR) Program, a partnership between the Global Environment Facility and the World Bank, our research team examined the recruitment patterns of Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) postlarvae among regions in the Caribbean, with a particular focus on Mesoamerica. Our goal was to collect comparable information on postlarval supply among regions and to provide data to test predictions of connectivity generated from a coupled biophysical oceanographic model of lobster larval dispersal. Here we present the results of the postlarval recruitment monitoring program. We monitored the catch of postlarvae on Witham-style collectors …


Recruitment In Degraded Marine Habitats: A Spatially Explicit, Individual-Based Model For Spiny Lobster, Mark J. Butler Iv, Thomas W. Dolan Iii, John H. Hunt, Kenneth A. Rose, William F. Herrnkind Jun 2005

Recruitment In Degraded Marine Habitats: A Spatially Explicit, Individual-Based Model For Spiny Lobster, Mark J. Butler Iv, Thomas W. Dolan Iii, John H. Hunt, Kenneth A. Rose, William F. Herrnkind

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Coastal habitats that serve as nursery grounds for numerous marine species are badly degraded, yet the traditional means of modeling populations of exploited marine species handle spatiotemporal changes in habitat characteristics and life history dynamics poorly, if at all. To explore how nursery habitat degradation impacts recruitment of a mobile, benthic species, we developed a spatially explicit, individual-based model that describes the recruitment of Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) in the Florida Keys, where a cascade of environmental disturbances has reconfigured nursery habitat structure. In recent years, the region has experienced a series of linked perturbations, among them, seagrass die-offs, …


Adaptive Strategies That Reduce Predation On Caribbean Spiny Lobster Postlarvae During Onshore Transport, Charles A. Acosta, Mark J. Butler Iv May 1999

Adaptive Strategies That Reduce Predation On Caribbean Spiny Lobster Postlarvae During Onshore Transport, Charles A. Acosta, Mark J. Butler Iv

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Like many marine species with meroplanktonic larvae, the Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) has a postlarval stage that moves from the oceanic plankton to inshore nurseries only under specific environmental conditions (i.e., at night, in the surface water layer, on the flood tide, and during new moon), presumably to avoid predation or to enhance onshore transport. Using held and mesocosm experiments, we compared predation on planktonic postlarvae swimming at night near the surface and bottom over coastal habitats along typical offshore-inshore transport paths and determined whether predation rates differed between lunar periods (new moon vs, full moon) and with prey …


Population-Dynamics Of Juvenile Caribbean Spiny Lobster, Panulirus-Argus, In Florida Bay, Florida, David Forcucci, Mark J. Butler Iv, John H. Hunt Jan 1994

Population-Dynamics Of Juvenile Caribbean Spiny Lobster, Panulirus-Argus, In Florida Bay, Florida, David Forcucci, Mark J. Butler Iv, John H. Hunt

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Despite a wealth of information on the growth and population dynamics of sub-adult and adult Caribbean spiny lobsters (Panulirus argus), there is far less information about younger juveniles under natural conditions. Here we describe growth and population dynamics of juvenile spiny lobsters (12-68 mm carapace length, CL) that we have studied for 14 months (October 1988-December 1989) using mark-recapture techniques in a hardbottom community in Florida Bay, Florida. We also monitored the supply of postlarvae into the region in 1988 and 1989 using Witham-type surface collectors in an effort to link peak periods of settlement of postlarvae with subsequent cohorts …


Spiny Lobster Recruitment In South Florida: Quantitative Experiments And Management Implications, Mark J. Butler Iv, William F. Herrnkind Jan 1992

Spiny Lobster Recruitment In South Florida: Quantitative Experiments And Management Implications, Mark J. Butler Iv, William F. Herrnkind

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Understanding recruitment and identifying factors critical to that process are imperative if adult spiny lobster Panulirus argus stocks are to be conserved and properly managed. The goal of our research has been to obtain ecological information linking inshore postlarval spiny lobster recruitment to later life stages, thereby providing the basic framework for assessing and predicting adult stock. Since 1983, we have investigated various aspects of spiny lobster recruitment including: postlarval time-to-metamorphosis, postlarval/juvenile habitat selection and selection cues, postlarval/juvenile crypticity and susceptibility to predation, juvenile food preference and emigration, juvenile sociality, and the effect of habitat degradation (i.e., siltration) on postlarval/juvenile …


Are Artificial "Witham" Surface Collectors Adequate Indicators Of Caribbean Spiny Lobster, Panulirus Argus, Recruitment?, Mark J. Butler Iv, William F. Herrnkind Jan 1989

Are Artificial "Witham" Surface Collectors Adequate Indicators Of Caribbean Spiny Lobster, Panulirus Argus, Recruitment?, Mark J. Butler Iv, William F. Herrnkind

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Understanding the local dynamics of Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) postlarval influx, settlement, and recruitment may be essential for the responsible management of this important and heavily exploited resource. Most lobster recruitment research programs in the Caribbean employ derivations of the "Witham"-type surface collector to monitor postlarval (puerulus) lobster influx. However, the relevance of data obtained from surface collectors with respect to the estimation of actual puerulus influx, settlement, or recruitment to subsequent benthic juvenile stages remains untested. We investigated that relevance on regional (i.e., tens of kilometers) and local (i.e., tens of meters) scales by examining the …


Factors Regulating Settlement And Microhabitat Use By Spiny Lobsters Panulirus Argus, William F. Herrnkind, Mark J. Butler Iv Jan 1986

Factors Regulating Settlement And Microhabitat Use By Spiny Lobsters Panulirus Argus, William F. Herrnkind, Mark J. Butler Iv

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Clumps of highly-branched red algae Laurencia spp. serve as important settling habitat for postlarval spiny lobsters Panulirus argus and as residence for early benthic-stage juveniles. Given choice between the 2 most abundant macrophytes in Florida Bay, Laurencia spp. and the seagrass Thalassia testudinum, postlarval and juvenile lobsters chose Laurencia spp. Postlarvae apparently use intricate algal architecture as a cue for settlement, whereas juveniles use both architecture and food abundance in selecting habitat. In tethering experiments, predation on juvenile lobsters was very high on open sand, much reduced in algal clumps and seagrass, and lowest in dense algal meadows. Predation …