Coastal-Oceanic planktonic distribution of natantia shrimps in the Florida Keys, U.S.A.

Abstract

As part of the Southeast Florida and Caribbean Recruitment Project (SEFCAR) the taxonomic composition and horizontal distribution of the larval natantia decapods and micronektonic shrimps from the coastal shelf water near Looe Key, Florida was quantitatively described. Plankton samples were collected May 28 and June 1-2, 1989, during cruise CA8906 of the RN Calanus (Lee el al. 1992). The transect off Looe Key was repeated on both legs of the cruise (Yeung and McGowan 1991). The stations were placed across the shelf between 1.7 and 30.6 km from the coast (Fig. 1). Stations 38-40 were made at the same location during a single 24 h period. A multiple opening-closing net, MOCNESS, sampled from the surface to near the bottom with discrete oblique tows at 25 m depth intervals. Five 25 ml aliquots of the total sample were analyzed and the mean of these standardized to n/m2.