Abstract

A recent review of worldwide mangrove field studies found that a consensus regarding the importance of mangroves as a nursery ground for fishes was difficult because so few studies reported data at the species-specific level. In a novel effort to report data trends towards reaching a scientific consensus, 26 relevant field studies of fishes inhabiting mangroves in the western Atlantic were culled for size (mean, range, and maturation) and utilization metrics (standardized abundance, density, or biomass) for snappers (Lutjanidae) and grunts (Haemulidae). In support of the nursery paradigm, the average size examined was roughly half, and the maximum size was at, the respective size-at-maturity for each species. In addition, the mean density of individual species were significantly greater than either adjacent seagrass or reef habitats in three of four comparisons. Three geographic groupings in the snapper/grunt assemblage were also found through agglomerative cluster-analysis and Indicator Species Analysis; Lutjanus apodus and Haemulon flavolineatum indicated most island countries, L. griseus indicated continental western margins, and L. jocu, H. aurolineatum, and H. bonairi indicated Guadeloupe. These results compare well to model predictions of larval dispersal and may depict areas of high and low connectivity in the region

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