Large predatory fishes, capable of traveling large distances, can facilitate energy flow linkages among spatially separated habitat patches via extended foraging behaviors over large areas. We tested this concept by tracking the movement of a large mobile estuarine fish, red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus). Specifically, we addressed the following questions: 1) What are the spatial and temporal patterns of red drum movement (rates of dispersal) and activity space? and 2) Does red drum movement facilitate linkages among estuarine marsh complexes? Patterns of red drum dispersal, activity space, and residency suggested limited movement between similar saltmarsh complexes by a mobile fish during our five-month study. Residency analysis also corroborated dispersal and activity-space data; further suggesting limited movement between the marsh complexes we monitored. Our results imply that red drum induce minimal linkages among these spatially separated habitat complexes on a sub-annual scale. These data highlight potential within-estuary spatial structure for mobile fishes, and could inform subsequent efforts to track energy flows in coastal food webs, predict the footprint of local habitat restoration benefits, and enhance the design of survey regimes to quantify overall population demography.

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Funding Sources: North Carolina Coastal Recreational Fishing License grant program

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Collaborators: Matthew Kenworthy*, Joel Fodrie*, Charles Peterson, Jon Grabowski, Craig Layman, Graham Sherwood, Rachel Gittman, Danielle Keller, Sean Powers

     *Project PI