Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine some biological parameters of the Caribbean reef shark, Carcharhinus perezi, from Los Roques Archipelago National Park. The information analyzed was obtained from the artisanal shark fishery monitoring that corresponds to the year 2001. During this period, 244 sharks were captured (67-240 cm TL), comprising 38.3% of the shark fishing composition by species. The sexual maturity is attained at about 154-165 cm TL. The young sharks are born at about 76-86 cm TL, during early August and middle September. The diet of C. perezi was comprised of 15 items, the most important preys were Caranx sp, Ocyurus chrysurus y Hemirhamphus brasiliensis. These preys comprise 24.3% (%N) y 29.0% (%A) of the diet composition. The length frequency analysis showed that the growth rates estimates for the first three life years were 40.3, 30.0 y 20.0 cm TL/year, respectively. C. perezi displayed a fast growth, in relation with other species of the genus Carcharhinus. The fast growth would be caused by effect of the elevated water temperature and food abundance present in the study area

PDF Preview