Spatial-Temporal Distribution of the Palinurid and Scyllarid Phyllosoma Larvae in Oman Coastal Waters

Abstract

The Bongo Net samples collected between 2005 and 2008 in the Sea of Oman and in the north-western part of the Arabian Sea (near Massirah Island) were analyzed, for a pilot assessment of seasonal and spatial distribution of the phyllosoma larvae. In the samples collected, 84% of all phyllosoma larvae were from the family Palinuridae, while the others were contributed by family Scyllaridae. All larvae of Panulirus homarus were in the first development stage and had a mean body length of 1.30±0.89mm. The phyllosoma larvae of the less abundant family Scyllaridae were in the second, third, and fourth development stages, which had a mean length of 2.3mm, 3.3mm and 4.63mm, respectively. In terms of seasonal changes, the phyllosoma larvae tend to appear in Omani waters in February, reaching their maximum numbers in April. The abundance of phyllosoma P. homarus was as much as twofold higher in the Arabian Sea compared to the Sea of Oman.

Keywords

• arabian sea, zooplankton, larvae.