Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic
The presence of spiny butterfly rays, <i>Gymnura altavela</i>, in waters less than 20 m deep off the Canary Islands shows marked seasonality, with relatively high abundances in the summer and autumn. Large aggregations of sometimes hundreds of individuals, primarily females, appear in sp...
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MDPI AG
2023-04-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/9/1455 |
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| author | Ana Espino-Ruano Jose J. Castro Airam Guerra-Marrero Lorena Couce-Montero Eva K. M. Meyers Angelo Santana-del-Pino David Jimenez-Alvarado |
| author_facet | Ana Espino-Ruano Jose J. Castro Airam Guerra-Marrero Lorena Couce-Montero Eva K. M. Meyers Angelo Santana-del-Pino David Jimenez-Alvarado |
| author_sort | Ana Espino-Ruano |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The presence of spiny butterfly rays, <i>Gymnura altavela</i>, in waters less than 20 m deep off the Canary Islands shows marked seasonality, with relatively high abundances in the summer and autumn. Large aggregations of sometimes hundreds of individuals, primarily females, appear in specific shallow areas of the archipelago and seem to be associated with the seasonal variation in water temperature. This seasonal pattern of presence or absence in shallow areas suggests that spiny butterfly rays migrate into deeper waters or other unknown areas during the rest of the year. <i>G. altavela</i> shows sexual dimorphism; in our study, females were larger and more abundant than males, with a sex ratio of 1:18.9. The species’ estimated asymptotic length, <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub>, was 183.75 cm and thus close to the common length reported for the species (200 cm). The von Bertalanffy growth constant (<i>k</i>) oscillated between 0.210 and 0.310 year<sup>−1</sup>, as similarly described for the species in the Western North Atlantic off the U.S. coast. From June to November, the seawater temperature oscillated between 19 and 24 °C, and massive aggregations of females occurred at 22–24 °C and in a few specific sandy beaches on the islands. Spiny butterfly rays, mostly females, show a preference for aggregating in shallow waters during summertime, probably conditionate to mating or breeding behaviour. |
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| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:25:13Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
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| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-825141cb23dd48368e62c02524e6ba622023-11-17T22:29:21ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-04-01139145510.3390/ani13091455Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central AtlanticAna Espino-Ruano0Jose J. Castro1Airam Guerra-Marrero2Lorena Couce-Montero3Eva K. M. Meyers4Angelo Santana-del-Pino5David Jimenez-Alvarado6Biodiversidad y Conservación, IU-ECOAQUA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Edf. Ciencias Básicas, Campus Universitario de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainBiodiversidad y Conservación, IU-ECOAQUA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Edf. Ciencias Básicas, Campus Universitario de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainBiodiversidad y Conservación, IU-ECOAQUA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Edf. Ciencias Básicas, Campus Universitario de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainBiodiversidad y Conservación, IU-ECOAQUA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Edf. Ciencias Básicas, Campus Universitario de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainZoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, 53113 Bonn, GermanyDepartment of Mathematics, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, 35018 Las Palmas, SpainBiodiversidad y Conservación, IU-ECOAQUA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Edf. Ciencias Básicas, Campus Universitario de Tafira, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainThe presence of spiny butterfly rays, <i>Gymnura altavela</i>, in waters less than 20 m deep off the Canary Islands shows marked seasonality, with relatively high abundances in the summer and autumn. Large aggregations of sometimes hundreds of individuals, primarily females, appear in specific shallow areas of the archipelago and seem to be associated with the seasonal variation in water temperature. This seasonal pattern of presence or absence in shallow areas suggests that spiny butterfly rays migrate into deeper waters or other unknown areas during the rest of the year. <i>G. altavela</i> shows sexual dimorphism; in our study, females were larger and more abundant than males, with a sex ratio of 1:18.9. The species’ estimated asymptotic length, <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub>, was 183.75 cm and thus close to the common length reported for the species (200 cm). The von Bertalanffy growth constant (<i>k</i>) oscillated between 0.210 and 0.310 year<sup>−1</sup>, as similarly described for the species in the Western North Atlantic off the U.S. coast. From June to November, the seawater temperature oscillated between 19 and 24 °C, and massive aggregations of females occurred at 22–24 °C and in a few specific sandy beaches on the islands. Spiny butterfly rays, mostly females, show a preference for aggregating in shallow waters during summertime, probably conditionate to mating or breeding behaviour.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/9/1455<i>Gymnura altavela</i>butterfly rayvisual censusecologyelasmobranchsCanary Islands |
| spellingShingle | Ana Espino-Ruano Jose J. Castro Airam Guerra-Marrero Lorena Couce-Montero Eva K. M. Meyers Angelo Santana-del-Pino David Jimenez-Alvarado Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic Animals <i>Gymnura altavela</i> butterfly ray visual census ecology elasmobranchs Canary Islands |
| title | Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic |
| title_full | Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic |
| title_fullStr | Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic |
| title_short | Aggregative Behaviour of Spiny Butterfly Rays (<i>Gymnura altavela,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) in the Shallow Coastal Zones of Gran Canaria in the Eastern Central Atlantic |
| title_sort | aggregative behaviour of spiny butterfly rays i gymnura altavela i linnaeus 1758 in the shallow coastal zones of gran canaria in the eastern central atlantic |
| topic | <i>Gymnura altavela</i> butterfly ray visual census ecology elasmobranchs Canary Islands |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/9/1455 |
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