|
|
Mycteroperca fusca
– Endangered
Taxonomy
|
Kingdom:
|
ANIMALIA
|
|
Phylum:
|
CHORDATA
|
|
Class:
|
ACTINOPTERYGII
|
|
Order:
|
PERCIFORMES
|
|
Family:
|
SERRANIDAE
|
|
Scientific Name:
|
Mycteroperca fusca
|
|
Species Authority:
|
Lowe, 1838
|
|
Synonym/s:
|
Serranus emarginatus Valenciennes, 1843 Serranus fuscus Lowe, 1838 Serranus simonyi Steindachner, 1891
|
|
Common Name/s:
|
| English | — | COMB GROUPER, ISLAND GROUPER |
| French | — | MEROU D'ILE |
| Spanish | — | ABADEJO, ABADE, ABAE, GITANO, MERO ABADEJO, SAMA |
|
Assessment Information
|
Red List Category & Criteria:
|
EN B1ab(v) ver 3.1 (2001)
|
|
Year Assessed:
|
2007
|
|
Assessor/s:
|
Rocha, L., Padovani Ferreira, B., Choat, H. & Sampaio, C.
|
|
Evaluator/s:
|
Craig, M., Sadovy, Y. & Bertoncini, A. (Grouper & Wrasse Red List Authority)
|
|
Justification:
|
Mycteroperca fusca is listed as Endangered (EN) because it has an extent of occurrence less than 5,000 km2 and is known only from three locations. The species has been fished such that there has been significant decline in the number of mature individuals. The species forms spawning aggregations which are targeted by fisheries.
|
Geographic Range
|
Range Description:
|
Mycteroperca fusca is known only from the Eastern Atlantic. The species is known with certainty only from the Azores, Madeira, Cape Verde, and the Canary Islands (Heemstra and Randall 1993).
Follow link below for Figure 1: distribution map for M. fusca.
| For further information about this species, see 64409.pdf (161 KB). A PDF viewer such as Adobe Acrobat Reader is required. |
![[Get Adobe Reader]](../../../images/getacro "Download Adobe Acrobat Reader")
|
|
|
Countries:
|
Native:
Cape Verde; Portugal (Azores, Madeira); Spain (Canary Is.)
|
Population
|
Population:
|
General
Mycteroperca fusca has a limited range and was previously abundant, but due to fishing pressure is now locally rare. There has been local extirpation from the most intensively fished areas in the islands of the Canary Island Archipelago.
Sub-populations Azores (Az), Madeira (Mad) and the Canary Islands
Mycteroperca fusca has an erratic distribution. Individuals are rarely observed greater than 40 cm TL, or approximately 1/2 of the known maximum size.
In the Canary Archipelago, among all groupers surveyed, Mycteroperca fusca had the greatest mean area biomass (464.63 ± 1464.25 g/100 m², mean ± SD; n = 768 transects), while the mean abundance was 0.32 ± 0.76 ind/100 m² (mean ± SD, n = 768). Significant differences in abundances and biomasses were observed among the islands surveyed (Tuya et al. 2006).
Specific areas of occurrence
Santa Maria (Azores) at Baixa do Norte (reproductive aggregation known and monitored annually); São Miguel (Azores) at Ilhéus dos Mosteiros (adults very rare); Terceira (Azores) at Ilhéu da Mina (adults very rare); Faial (Azores) at Baixa do Castelo Branco (formerly the largest known reproductive aggregation in the NE Atlantic, presently totally extirpated by overfishing); MAP of Garajau (Madeiras), very common including adults but presently not known if reproductive aggregations occur; North Coast of Porto Santo Island (Madeiras), very rare but adults are regularly seen at depths below 30 m. (J.P. Barreiros pers. comm.).
|
|
Population Trend:
|
|
Habitat and Ecology
|
Habitat and Ecology:
|
Mycteroperca fusca is a demersal species that occurs near the bottom in rocky areas at depths from 1 to 200 m. Juveniles may be found in tide pools. Two specimens collected from the Cape Verde by J. Cadenat were from a depth of 50 m.
|
|
System:
|
Marine
|
|
List of Habitats:
|
| 9.2 | Marine Neritic - Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs |
|
Threats
|
Threats:
|
A major threat is fishing targeted at spawning aggregations, which for other serranids of similar life history has resulted in population declines, altered sex ratio and aggregation extirpation.
M. fusca (along with Epinephelus marginatus) showed the strongest responses to variations in fishing intensity and human population among the Canary Islands, thus supporting the hypothesis that major human intervention has affected the abundance and biomass of both species across the Archipelago (Tuya et al. 2006).
|
|
List of Threats:
|
| 3.1.1 | Harvesting (hunting/gathering) - Food - Subsistence use/local trade (ongoing) |
| 3.1.2 | Harvesting (hunting/gathering) - Food - Sub-national/national trade (ongoing) |
| 9.9 | Intrinsic factors - Restricted range (ongoing) |
|
Conservation Actions
|
Conservation Actions:
|
The range of Mycteroperca fusca includes a few protected areas. It is recommended that fishing of this species cease.
|
|
List of Conservation Actions:
|
| 1.1.1 | Policy-based actions - Management plans - Development (needed) |
| 1.1.2 | Policy-based actions - Management plans - Implementation (needed) |
| 1.2.1.2 | Policy-based actions - Legislation - Development - National level (needed) |
| 3.2 | Research actions - Population numbers and range (needed) |
| 3.3 | Research actions - Biology and Ecology (needed) |
| 3.6 | Research actions - Uses and harvest levels (needed) |
| 3.9 | Research actions - Trends/Monitoring (needed) |
| 4.4.2 | Habitat and site-based actions - Protected areas - Establishment (in place) |
| 4.4.3 | Habitat and site-based actions - Protected areas - Management (needed) |
| 5.3.1 | Species-based actions - Sustainable use - Harvest management (needed) |
| 5.3.2 | Species-based actions - Sustainable use - Trade management (needed) |
|
Bibliography
|
Bibliography:
|
Tuya, F., Jerez Sanchez and Ricardo, H.J. 2006. Populations of inshore serranids across the Canarian Archipelago; relationships with human pressure and implications for conservation. Biological Conservation 128(1): 13-24.
|
|
|
