Distribution and abundance of ichthyoplankton in the Pecém harbor region, Ceará State

Abstract

The research on ichthyoplankton is of utmost relevance to fully understand the functioning of marine ecosystems.  Although such studies are frequent in many regions of the planet, there is no information about the ichthyoplankton for  the coast of Ceará State. In order to change this situation, the distribution and abundance of fish eggs and larvae from fish  inhabiting the neighboring waters of the Pecém harbor were studied. A total of 28 samples were collected in four different  campaigns during 2006. The samples were sorted and identified in the laboratory, totaling 4,320 eggs and 1.410 larvae  of fish, out of which 1,395 larvae were identified pertaining to 13 lower taxa (genera or species), three orders and nine  families. The ichthyoplankton from the studied area comprised three categories of families: pelagic, reef associated and  demersal, with a prevalence of the first. Fish eggs were most abundant during the rainy season, while larvae numbers  were larger during the dry months. The families Engraulidae and Serranidae were the most representative throughout  the studied period and region.