You are here: GulfBase > Projects & Programs > The Structure, Function, and Timing of Jewfish (Epinephelus itajara) Spawning in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico	•

	Home Upcoming Events Institutions & Organizations People Bays & Estuaries Reefs, Banks & Islands Environmental Issues General Facts about the Gulf Exploration History Other Online Resources Electronic Books Mexican Coral Reef Species Checklist InfoHub Site Search:		The Structure, Function, and Timing of Jewfish (Epinephelus itajara) Spawning in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico The ultimate goal of this research is to define the behavior, demography and movement patterns of Epinephelus itajara associated in spawning aggregations in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Such information will lead to fishery-independent estimates of stock recovery and elucidation of the mating system of this important grouper species. Jewfish have been overexploited to the point of economic extinction. As a result, Florida populations have been protected from exploitation since 1990, but the level of recovery in the Exclusive Economic Zone is uncertain. Evaluation of the dynamics of spawning aggregations by visual and acoustic methods would provide a basis for monitoring recovery. That is, if jewfish abundance in spawning aggregations correlates with stock size, then these fishery-independent methods can be used efficiently to monitor recovery. The expected benefits from this proposed research will be the advancement of our scientific understanding of the reproductive processes of economically important marine fishes. This scientific information will improve management decisions through reliable jewfish stock-size estimates and by providing details of the jewfish mating system for comparison with that of other exploited groupers. In addition to fishing interests, commercial opportunities relative to diving ecotourism may arise. The impacts of this work will extend as far as jewfish are distributed, that is, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, but especially south Florida, because population sizes are historically greatest there. Principal Investigator(s) or Program Chair: Koenig, Chris F. Coleman A. Eklund Sponsor(s): National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Institution(s): Florida State University (FSU) Field of Focus: Jewfish reproduction Study Site:   Eastern Gulf of Mexico Home Page:   http://www.bio.fsu.edu/mote/projects.html E-mail:   koenig@bio.fsu.edu Keywords:   Jewfish, Spawning aggregation, Fisheries, Stock, Mating
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