Scientific Note Occurrence of the hybrid snapper between yellowtail snapper Ocyurus chrysurus (Bloch 1791) and lane snapper Lutjanus synagris (Linnaeus 1758) (Perciformes: Lutjanidae) in the Southwest Atlantic, Northeast Brazil CARLOS HUDSON DE O. BATISTA*, GABRIELA M. B. DE CAMARGO, PAULO G. V. OLIVEIRA, DRÁUSIO P. VÉRAS, PATRÍCIA B. PINHEIRO, CEZAR A. F. FERNANDES, PAULO TRAVASSOS & FÁBIO H. V. HAZIN Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, UFRPE, Departamento de Pesca e Aquicultura, DEPAQ, Laboratório de Ecologia Marinha, Laboratório de Etologia de Peixes e Laboratório de Oceanografia Pesqueira. Av. Dom Manuel de Medeiros s/n Dois Irmãos, CEP: 52171-900 Recife PE, Brazil. *E-mail: batistacho@hotmail.com Abstract. Occurrence report of a hybrid specimen of Ocyurus chrysurus and Lutjanus synagris, collected by an artisanal fishing boat in the coast off Pernambuco (northeastern of Brazil). It measured 310 mm in standard length and weighed 701.12 g. Key words: hybridization, distribution, reef fish Resumo. Ocorrência do hibrido entre Ocyurus chrysurus e Lutjanus synagris no Atlântico Sudoeste, Nordeste do Brasil. Registro de ocorrência do hibrido entre Ocyurus chrysurus e Lutjanus synagris capturado pela frota artesanal do litoral norte do Estado de Pernambuco. O exemplar apresentou 310 mm de comprimento padrão e 701.12 g de peso total. Palavras chave: hibridização, distribuição, peixe recifal The Lutjanidae family comprises about 108 species worldwide (Froese & Pauly 2011), of which 19 occur in the Western Atlantic and at least 14 in Brazilian waters, and they are: Lutjanus alexandrei Moura & Lindeman, 2007, hybrid snapper “Lutjanus ambiguus” (Poey 1860) this study, Lutjanus analis (Cuvier 1828), Lutjanus bucanella (Cuvier 1828), Lutjanus cyanopterus (Cuvier 1828), Lutjanus jocu (Bloch & Schneider 1801), Lutjanus purpureus Poey, 1866, Lutjanus synagris (Linnaeus 1758), Lutjanus vivanus (Cuvier 1828), Ocyurus chrysurus (Bloch 1791), Pristipomoides aquilonaris (Goode & Bean 1896), Pristipomoides freemani Anderson, 1966, Rhomboplites aurorubens (Cuvier 1829) and Etelis oculatus (Valenciennes 1828) (Anderson 2003, Floeter et al. 2003, Moura & Lindeman 2007, Luiz Jr. et al. 2008). The hybrid between Ocyurus chrysurus (Bloch 1791) and Lutjanus synagris (Linnaeus, 1758), (Loftus 1992) was described by Poey (1860) from specimens collected in Havana (Cuba). Duarte Bello (1959), in a check list of fishes from Cuba, showed “L. ambiguus” as the Cuban grey snapper. Later, Duarte Bello & Buesa (1973), although unable to discard the hypothesis of a natural hybrid, considered it as being a valid species. Richards (1988), however, expressed his view that Pan-American Journal of Aquatic Sciences (2012), 7(1):45-49 46 C. HUDSON DE O. BATISTA ET AL. “L. ambiguus” was in fact a hybrid, since it shared several characteristics with L. synagris and O. chrysurus. Loftus (1992), comparing the zoogeography (Randall 1968, Allen 1985, Grimes 1987) of the hybrid likely parents species, Ocyurus chrysurus and Lutjanus synagris, including spawning season and area, reported that they both have a wide distribution in the Western Atlantic, from Massachusetts (USA) to Southern Brazil, being common in shallow waters. He also highlighted the fact that lutjanids have, in general, a higher probability to produce a natural hybrid. The same author reported the occurrence of the hybrid specimen between Ocyurus chrysurus and Lutjanus synagris from the Caribbean Sea up to Florida, with reported specimens from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, Bahamas, Jamaica, Panama and Venezuela (Figure 1). Figure 1. Map of the Atlantic Ocean showing the site of occurrence of the hybrid specimen between Ocyurus chrysurus and Lutjanus synagris in red, according to Loftus (1992). The specimen analyzed in the present work was collected in the Northern coast of Pernambuco State, Northeast Brazil, between 07°48’S and 034°32’W, at approximately 15m deep, by an artisanal fishing boat based in Itamaracá Island, using fish traps known as “covo”. According to the fishing bulletin organized by the Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis (Ibama 2008) the main species caught by this fishing gear were Lutjanus synagris, Sparisoma axillare, Sparisoma frondosum, Haemulon plumierii, Haemulon aurolineatum Pseudupeneus maculatus and other snappers such as, Lutjanus analis, Lutjanus jocu, Lutjanus alexandrei and Ocyurus chrysurus. In the Laboratory of Fish Ethology (LEP) from the Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, the specimen was identified as the hybrid specimen between Ocyurus chrysurus and Lutjanus synagris (Figure 2) and the meristic and morphometric characteristics were then noted. The total weight, 701.12 g, was measured to the nearest centigram (0.01 g) and all morphometric measurements to the nearest mm (Table I). The stomach was removed through incisions above the esophagus and below the large intestine, with the food itens being identified to the lowest possible taxon to subsequently determine the feeding habits. Pan-American Journal of Aquatic Sciences (2012), 7(1):45-49 Occurrence of the hybrid snapper in the Southwest Atlantic, Northeast Brazil 47 Figure 2. The hybrid snapper caught in the coast of Pernambuco (northeastern of Brazil). Scale bar: 5 cm. Table I. Morphometric characteristics of the hybrid specimen of Ocyurus chrysurus and Lutjanus synagris caught in the coast of Pernambuco (northeastern of Brazil) Measurements Absolute value (mm) 417 370 310 190 111 104 100 108 35 109 19 37 Total length (TL) Fork length Standard length Pre-anal length Pre-dorsal length Pre-pelvic length Pre-pectoral length Body depth Caudal peduncle depth Head length (HL) Eye diameter Snout length Stomach contents of one specimen were examined. The stomach was 3/4 full, measuring 8.5cm and weighting of 25.50g. The stomach contents could not be identified and were classified as being Teleostei. The teleostei is a main category reported in the diets of snappers. Their diets are composed mainly by small pelagic fishes such as, clupeids, engraulids and juvenile anguilliform (Martinez-Andrade 2003). According to Allen (1985) the snappers are active predators, classified as opportunistic carnivores that feed on a variety of items. Regarding the feeding habits of the hybrid % ... 88,7 TL 74,3 TL 45,6 TL 26,6 TL 24,9 TL 24,0 TL 25,9 TL 8,4 TL 26,1 TL 17,4 HL 33,9 HL snapper parent’s, large adults of O. chrysurus feed on planktonic and benthic animals, including fishes, crustaceans, worms, gastropods, and cephalopods. L. synagris, the opportunistic carnivore, feeds on fishes, crustaceans, worms, gastropods, and cephalopods (Randall 1967, Parrish 1987, Anderson 2003). The stomach contents of only one hybrid snapper did not clarify its feeding habits. It was not possible to determine if the hybrid "acts" like O. chrysurus (planktonic feeder) or like L. synagris (specific bottom/reef feeder). Pan-American Journal of Aquatic Sciences (2012), 7(1):45-49 48 C. HUDSON DE O. BATISTA ET AL. The coloration pattern was a mix of its parent’s color characters: dark red color overall, with a yellow stripe running from the eyes through the caudal fin base (O. chrysurus character). Five yellow stripes on belly, from under pectoral fins to the caudal peduncle; fins color varying from yellow to reddish with bright yellow margins; caudal fin red (characters of L. synagris). The largest L. ambiguus in collection measures 266mm SL (Loftus 1992). However, the largest specimen reported measures 40.0cm TL (Allen 1985) smaller than the specimen hereby described measuring 41.7cm TL. Regarding the meristic characteristics observed, the hybrid snapper has intermediate characters in relation with its parental species, L. synagris and O. chrysurus, shown in table II. Table II. Meristic characteristics do hybrid snapper and parental species. Species Hybrid snapper (this study) Hybrid snapper (Domeier & Clarke 2005) Hybrid snapper (Anderson1967) L. synagris O. chrysurus Dorsal fin Anal fin Pectoral fin scales lateral line gill rakers upper and lower X - 13 III - 9 16 49 8/16 X - 13 III - 9 16 47 8/16 X - 13 III - 8-9 16 48-49 8-9/16-18 X - 12-13 X - 12-14 III - 8-9 III - 8-9 15-16 15-17 47-50 46-49 6-7/12-15 9-11/21-23 Catches of hybrid specimens have been reported only within the range of the presumed parental species overlap (Allen 1985), as is the present study. Besides, both parental species have spawning periods that overlap in the Northeast coast of Brazil: L. synagris spawns from October to April, during warm months (Souza Junior et al. 2008), while O. chrysurus spawns from June to November (Franco et al. 2005). Hubbs (1955) and Smith (1966) noticed that hybrid species generally show intermediate characters between parents. The same authors affirmed that hybrid species are rare among marine fishes and that hybridization is also dependent on the environment, only occurring when adults of both species spawn in the same geographical area. Loftus (1992) and McEachram & Fechhelm (2005), comparing morphologic and meristic characters of hybrid snapper with their presumed parents, observed intermediate characteristics of both species, thus concluding that it was a natural hybrid of two distinct genera (Ocyurus and Lutjanus). Domeier and Clarke (1992), studying the same theme, presented evidences that these genera may be taxonomically much closer than recognized, suggesting that Ocyurus should be synonymized with Lutjanus. Acknowledgments The authors would like to acknowledge Alfredo Carvalho-Filho and Mariana Travassos Tolloti for their valuable contributions, and also the Fundação de Amparo à Ciência e Tecnologia do Estado de Pernambuco – FACEPE for the financial support. References Allen, G. R. 1985. 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Ovarian analysis of the lane snapper, Lutjanus synagris (Actinopterygii: Lutjanidae), and considerations about its reproduction in Ceará State. Arquivos de Ciências do Mar, 41(1): 90-97. Received August 2011 Accepted February 2012 Published online June 2012 Pan-American Journal of Aquatic Sciences (2012), 7(1):45-49