NEW POSTER: HOW YOU CAN HELP PROTECT THE NASSAU GROUPER Critically endangered species are those facing a HIGH risk of becoming EXTINCT! The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Grouper and Wrasses Specialist Group has classified 13% of the grouper species assessed to date as threatened (i.e. critically [...]
SHOULD THE SHARK & SEA TURTLE BAN BE LIFTED IN THE BAHAMAS? HERE'S WHAT THE SCIENCE SAYS By Dr. Craig Dahlgren, Executive Director, PIMS Shark and sea turtle conservation in The Bahamas has recently re-emerged as a contentious issue. Since 2011, The Bahamas has been a shark sanctuary with [...]
SUPER SPIKEY CLEANERS By Hayley-Jo Carr The Longspined Sea Urchin, Diadema antillarum, provides essential ecosystem services to coral reefs, however populations have seen drastic reductions in numbers due to a disease outbreak in the 1980s. Restoration efforts are underway to assist in restoring local populations of this important grazer. [...]
This article focuses on the long distance spawning migrations of Nassau grouper in The Bahamas.
Groupers are a phylogenetically diverse group and include many ecologically and economically valuable predatory marine fishes that have experienced drastic population declines. Reproduction via spawning aggregations increases the vulnerability of grouper species such as Nassau grouper Epinephelus striatus to overfishing, and this is likely to be a major contributing factor to population declines.
