First record of mating behavior and induced parturition of the Brazilian endemic Lutz's Stingray Hypanus berthalutzae

• Published in: Journal of Fish Biology
• Main Authors: Bettcher, Vanessa B., Bucair, Nayara, Granville, Marta, Goes, Amanda, Mendes, Liana de Figueiredo, Di Dario, Fabio, de Moura, Rodrigo Leão, Garla, Ricardo, Rangel, Bianca S.
• Other Authors: KAUST Beacon Development King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Thuwal Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia e Evolução (PPGEE) Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Rua São Francisco Xavier Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil, Laboratório de Ictiologia Aplicada (LICTA) Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO) Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil, Departamento de Oceanografia Biológica, Laboratório de Ecologia da Reprodução e do Recrutamento de Organismos Marinhos (ECORREP) Instituto Oceanográfico, Universidade de São Paulo São Paulo Brazil, Barracudas – Comércio e Serviços Fotográficos e Cinematográficos Ltda Fernando de Noronha PE Brazil, Laboratório do Oceano, Departamento de Ecologia, Centro de Biociências Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte Natal RN Brazil, Instituto de Biodiversidade e Sustentabilidade - NUPEM/UFRJ Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. São José Barreto 764 Macaé RJ Brazil, Instituto de Biologia and SAGE/COPPE Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil, Departamento de Fisiologia Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, travessa 14, 321, CEP 05508-090, Cidade Universitária São Paulo SP Brazil
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Wiley 2022
• Subjects: Reproduction; Endangered species; Courtship; Marine Protected Area; South Atlantic Ocean; Elasmobranch; Luisa; Ricardo
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10754/683372; https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15249

The recently described Lutz's Stingray Hypanus berthalutzae is endemic to the Brazilian Province, including oceanic islands. Although it is expected to have life-history traits similar to the Southern Stingray H. americanus, little is known about its reproductive biology. Here we present the first observations of courtship behavior (n= 4), copulation (n= 3), and an induced parturition of the H. berthalutzae at the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, an insular Marine Protected Area from the Equatorial Atlantic Ocean. The mating event records included: (1) "chasing/close following", (2) "biting/pre-copulatory-biting", (3) insertion/copulation (Fig. 2 and 3b, c), and (4) "separation". These results are especially relevant, considering that records of reproductive behavior in the wild are rare for elasmobranchs in general. It was also observed that mating events occurred in different months, suggesting that the reproductive cycle of H. berthalutzae in this insular system is asynchronous, as observed for other stingray species in regions with favourable environmental conditions and abundant food throughout the year. The opportunistic documentation of the induced parturition allowed for direct non-lethal observation of the two pups at or near full term in late May. Although preliminary, these observations should be considered in future management plans as they provide relevant data about the life history traits and mating behavior of this endemic and threatened species. The authors thank Ricardo Araujofrom Núcleo de Gestão Integrada de Noronha - NGI Noronha/ICMBio (Instituto Chico Mendes para a Conservação da Biodiversidade)and the ICMBio local team for all their support. We are grateful for the support of the fishermen Carlinhos Gomes and Weliton da Silva. We also thank the photographers for allowing the use of the images: Jefferson Silva (record #2), Juliana Viana (record #3), Luisa Schneider (record #4), and Andressa Aviz (record #6). Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior – Brasil (CAPES) – ...