Abstract

In northeastern Brazil, the estuarine complex of Rio Formoso (PE), formed by the Ariquindá, Formoso and Passos Rivers, is enclosed in two Environmental Protection Area (EPA): the EPA of Guadalupe and the federal EPA Costa dos Corais - the largest marine conservation unit with an extension of over 135 km of coastline. This area is characterized by a large diversity of coastal ecosystems such as mangroves, seagrass beds, sand banks and coral reefs that together form a complex network of energy transfer that sustain shelter and food for several species throughout their life cycle. The federally protected goliath grouper, Epinephelus itajara, is a mangrove-dependent species that show a remarkable onto-genetic shift with juveniles being found in mangrove areas and adults on coral reefs, patch or rocky reefs and artificial structures. To study the distribution and movement of juvenile groupers in different areas of the estuary, using conven-tional tagging, we surveyed the artisanal camboa, performed by the fishing communities of the surrounding area, and used traps manzuá to capture larger juveniles groupers. The results show a large vulnerability of the goliath grouper with a cap-ture of 0.04 individuals/100 m of net by the camboa fishing and 0.07 individuals/trap. Also, the high recapture rate, 20.4%, helps proving the high spatial fidelity of the juveniles while in the estuary. This study aims to further define spatial fidelity and distribution patterns of this species in the area, using acoustic telemetry, as well as to help design-ing and implementing new management policies.

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