Preliminary Investigation of the Movements, Density, and Growth of Juvenile Queen Conch in a Nursery Area in Barbados

Conservation and sustainable use of queen conch (Strombus gigas) is a topic of considerable importance in the Caribbean and is supported by international (CITES) and regional (SPAW Protocol) treaties. Barbados, a conch range state with a small artisanal conch fishery and signatory to both legally binding treaties has recently begun investing in research and development of management plans for this species. To date, the fishery has been described, an island-wide conch abundance survey has been completed and on-going research is examining the reproductive characteristics and movement patterns of adult conch. The current pilot study compliments these efforts by investigating the movement patterns, density and growth of juvenile conch in a nursery area in Barbados over a 10-week period. Three juvenile conch aggregations within a nursery area were selected for study and over 100 individuals (mean shell length: 19.5 cm) from each aggregation were tagged using numbered disc tags (Floy Tag and Manufacturing Inc). A ‘key informant’ animal in each aggregation was also fitted with a Lotek MM-S-8-SO acoustic tag to assist in relocating the group. Animals were acoustically tracked and visually re-located every few days for 10 weeks. Position (depth, habitat and GPS co -ordinates) and density (number of individuals within 5m-radius) were recorded for key informants and a subsample of individuals within the aggregation were measured for shell length on each tracking dive. Summer home ranges, minimum distance travelled and movement speed were estimated for two key informants, and growth rates of the juvenile cohort within the aggregations were estimated. This preliminary study will inform the design of a larger scale study of the connectivity of juvenile and adult conch