THE FISH ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE NEARSHORE AREA OF PUNTA BAJA, BC, MEXICO, THE SOUTHERN LIMIT OF THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BIGHT

The area off Punta Baja, Baja California, Mexico, is an important coastal fishing ground. The nearshore fishes were sampled on a seasonal basis over a period of three years, from spring 2000 to winter 2003. Beam-trawl and otter trawl were towed along 5 m and 10 m depth contours; a gill net was placed between the 5-10 m depth. Low temperatures were registered from 10.8 to 15.4 degrees C (mean = 13.5 degrees C +/- 0.2 SE). A total of 3,509 fish individuals were collected belonging to 62 fish species. The most abundant and important fish species (ICI: index of community importance composite) by the contribution of the three sampling gears was the white croaker (Genyonemus lineatus). Separately, the most important species varied with sampling gears, depths, years, and were the bay pipefish (Syngnathus leptorhynchus), the walleye surfperch (Hyperprosopon argenteum), the Pacific sanddab (Citharichthys sordidus), and G. lineatus. Fish abundances showed differences between seasons in all sampling gears and depths. Positive correlations between fish abundances collected with otter trawl (5 and 10 m depth) and temperature were found. The fish community of the Punta Baja area was characterized by species associated with Macrocystis sp. beds, sandy bottom, and deeper species like scorpaenids, all typical species from the Southern California Bight. This data represents a baseline against which any future development affecting local ecosystems can be measured.