ABSTRACT
Introduction ............................................................................................................ 155 The Planktonic Larval Duration of Bonefi sh ........................................................ 156 Timing of Onshore Larval Migrations and Settlement ......................................... 157 Behavioral Adaptations of Bonefi sh Larvae .......................................................... 160 Physical Transport Processes and Bonefi sh Larval Infl ux .................................... 161 Interannual Variability in Larval Infl ux ................................................................ 168 Spatial Variability in Recruitment ......................................................................... 169 Settlement and Juvenile Habitats ........................................................................... 173 Research Priorities and Application for Management ........................................... 174 Acknowledgments .................................................................................................. 175 References .............................................................................................................. 175
Despite the importance of bonefi sh (Albula spp.) fi sheries, relatively little is known about the biology and ecology of most bonefi sh species. This is particularly true of early life history stages of bonefi sh, including both larval and early juvenile stages. Early life stages are often of critical importance to fi sh populations. The larval stage is when dispersal occurs over the greatest distances, connecting populations that may otherwise be separated by barriers to juvenile or adult movements. Larval and early juvenile stages are also the ones in which mortality rates are greatest and can vary considerably in response to a variety of environmental, biological, and anthropogenic infl uences (Chambers and Trippel, 1997). Physical transport of larvae by ocean currents, larval behavior, varying environmental conditions that affect larval growth, trophic interactions that affect larval survival, and both quantitative and qualitative differences in settlement and nursery habitats can cause larval infl ux to vary (reviewed by Cowen, 2002; Leis and McCormick, 2002).
