Ecologia populacional e uso do habitat de macrogastrópodes endêmicos alvos do comércio de conchas ornamentais

Abstract

Marine molluscs are used by man for various purposes. In the Brazilian Northeast, some large species are considered the most valuable in the trade of ornamental shells, such as Voluta ebraea, Cassis tuberosa, Turbinella laevigata and Lobatus goliath. The target species of this study, V. ebraea and T. laevigata, are endemic to the Brazilian coast, inhabit reef environments and are under pressure of capture. In this scenario, the objective of this study is to characterize the population structure of habitat size, composition and use, density and daytime and nocturnal activities of these macrogastrópodes. The study was conducted in the coastal reefs of Tamandaré- PE, inserted in APA Costa de Corais (APACC) and APA of Guadeloupe (APAG). The data were obtained from diurnal and nocturnal underwater observations during free dive, through 135 linear transects arranged perpendicular to the coast with dimensions of 50 x 4 m in the dry period. Voluta ebrae obtained an abundance of 81 individuals in the studied environment. The density was higher at night (62.4 ind.ha) than at day (12.06 ind.ha). The species was most active at night. We recorded an abundance of N = 206 of Turbinella laevigata, with higher density at night (129.1 ind.ha) than at daytime (47.1 ind.ha). The studied environment constitutes an area of great ecological importance for the maintenance of the stocks of V. ebraea and T. laevigata providing essential microhabitats to the establishment, development and permanence of the same. V. ebrae and T. laevigata are species of predominantly nocturnal habits. The registration of species at different stages of development suggests that the environment is an important area for reproduction, recruitment and development.