Juvenile Mullets (Pisces: Mugilidae) in the Estuary of Lagoa dos Patos, RS - Brazil

• Autor(a) principal: Vieira Sobrinho, João Paes
• Data de Publicação: 1991
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Institucional da FURG (RI FURG)
• Texto Completo: http://repositorio.furg.br/handle/1/5749

Juvenile mugilids collected during a 5 yr monthly beach seine survey in the shallow waters of the Lagoa dos Patos estuary, Brazil were examined in order to describe spatial and temporal patterns of species abundance. Species occurrence and abundance could be classified into two seasonal periods related to changes in water temperature and salinity. One period, associated with warmer and more saline waters and typified by a mixture of the three species (Mugil platanus, M. curema, and M. gaimardianus), occurred during the first 5-6 mo of each year. From mid-winter throught early summer M. curema and M. gaimardianus were scarce or absent, resulting in a second period associated with cold and less saline waters and typified by M. platanus. A life history model for M. platanus in southern Brazil is proposed.