Huge population explosion of Sharp nose puffers.

TracyJ

I was in Akumal, Mexico and saw literally thousands of juvenile puffer fish washing up on the beach every day.
The areas I visited and saw the dead puffers were from Playa del Carmen down to Punta Allen.

None of the locals had ever seen this phenomenon and nobody knew of a cause. There was no red tide at the time.

Hello all.

This phenomenon was recently noted by several researchers and scientists on the Coral Reef Listserve. The most likely explanation for the explosion was posted by Dr. John Ogdon -- "My guess is that sharpnose puffers have the same type of recruitment as Bill Gladfelter and I observed for balloonfish (Diodon holocanthus) many years ago in St. Croix. The larvae are pelagic for a long larval life, up to a year. During this interval; they slowly gather into huge schools of many thousands of individuals (about 3cm long) which then recruit en mass to whatever coastal region is favorable within the time frame of development. The area then becomes completely flooded with recruits which gradually disperse and are preyed upon. You could call this a sort of 17-year locust type of recruitment."

You can view the entire thread of Coral Listserv posts on this topic here --
http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/pipermail/coral-list/2008-December/038308.htm...

-- Christy Pattengill-Semmens
REEF Director of Science

I have also noticed a small percentage of them looking sick and a few dead ones on the bottom. I also saw them acting as cleaners. Held my hand out and they would try to clean my finger tips. Havent seen any mention of this behavior in my books.Any marine biologists out there with info?

Steve

Instructor and Photographer at Costa de Cocos Dive Resort.

Xcalak Mexico

I just returned from Ambergris Caye and there are sharpnose all over, shallow and deep, spread throughout the water column. Divemasters on the island say they began noticing them a few weeks ago and they've never seen them in these numbers before. Some that I saw (maybe five percent) were acting listless, and some looked shriveled, as if they were starving.   

Was out again today and there are still huge schools of them hanging around. On one dive site today there were hundreds of them just laying in the sand. Any biologists out there with any explaination for this?

Steve

Instructor and Photographer at Costa de Cocos Dive Resort.

Xcalak Mexico

My wife and I just got back from a week in Roatan (AKR) and noticed that the sharp nose puffers were plentiful there also.  We've never seen so many and on every dive.  Must be something about the second largest barrier reef.

Yes, Steve. I've noticed that there are lots more up here in Cozumel this fall as well. Don't know why, tho....