Short- and long-term movements of painted lobster (Panulirus versicolor) on a coral reef at Northwest Island, Australia |
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Authors: | A J Frisch |
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Institution: | (1) School of Marine and Tropical Biology, and Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia |
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Abstract: | Understanding movements of palinurid (spiny) lobsters is important to fisheries management. However, movement data obtained
with mark-capture techniques are often influenced by artefacts (e.g., displacement, tag-loss, tag-induced injury). To avoid
these problems, a novel approach was employed to investigate the movements of an important coral reef palinurid, the painted
lobster (Panulirus versicolor). Eighty adult individuals were captured by hand near Northwest Island, Australia. Each lobster was tagged internally (with
elastomer) and externally (with plastic zip-ties) to enable both short- (1–10 days) and long-term (6–24 months) observations.
Shortly thereafter, all lobsters were manually returned to their shelters (dens). After 6–24 months, 44 lobsters were recaptured,
giving an overall recapture rate of 55%. All of these individuals were recaptured within 500 m of their original den, thus
indicating a high level of site-fidelity for this species. Short-term observations revealed that individuals moved frequently
to and from nearby dens, and that male lobsters typically moved further than female lobsters. It is hypothesized that male
lobsters move about their home range more actively, perhaps to seek mating opportunities or to defend resources. The significance
of these observations is discussed with respect to the management of this important fishery resource. |
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Keywords: | Crustacea Palinuridae Spiny lobster Movement patterns Site-fidelity Fisheries management |
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