Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi, P.O. Box 45553, Al Mamoura Building, Murour Road, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Gulf Elasmo Project, P.O. Box, 29588, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Sci Rep. 2018 Oct 22;8(1):15597. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-33611-8.
Data on the diversity and relative abundance of elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) in the Arabian Gulf have been limited to fishery-dependent monitoring of landing sites. Understanding the diversity and abundance of sharks and rays is, however, crucial to inform policy and management plans. Baited Remote Underwater Video Surveys (BRUVS) were conducted in 2015-2016 across the United Arab Emirates Arabian Gulf waters encompassing a range of depths and habitat types. Data from 278 BRUVS (757 hours soak time) were analysed to gather information on diversity, relative abundance, species distribution, and habitat associations. Surveys recorded 213 individuals from 20 species of sharks and rays at 129 stations. The frequency of occurrence of species usually discarded by fishers such as the Arabian carpetshark (Chiloscyllium arabicum) and stingrays (Himantura spp.) was high, accounting for 60.5% of observed elasmobranchs. Despite the large survey area covered and extensive sampling effort, the relative abundance of sharks and rays was low at 0.28 elasmobranchs per hour, 0.13 sharks per hour, and 0.15 rays per hour. This CPUE was reduced to one of lowest recorded abundance on BRUVS from around the world when removing the two discarded species from the analysis (0.11 elasmobranchs per hour). These results likely reflect the intense fishing pressure and habitat loss contributing to population declines of many elasmobranchs in the Arabian Gulf. Findings provide a baseline for future work and can support the design of conservation strategies for sharks and rays in the UAE.
关于阿拉伯湾（鲨鱼和鳐鱼）的多样性和相对丰度的数据仅限于对登陆点的渔业依赖监测。然而，了解鲨鱼和鳐鱼的多样性和丰度对于为政策和管理计划提供信息至关重要。2015-2016 年，在阿联酋阿拉伯湾水域进行了诱饵远程水下视频调查（BRUVS），涵盖了一系列深度和生境类型。对 278 次 BRUVS（757 小时浸泡时间）的数据进行了分析，以收集多样性、相对丰度、物种分布和生境关联信息。调查在 129 个站点记录了 20 种鲨鱼和鳐鱼的 213 个个体。渔民通常丢弃的物种（如阿拉伯地毯鲨（Chiloscyllium arabicum）和黄貂鱼（Himantura spp.））的出现频率很高，占观察到的软骨鱼类的 60.5%。尽管调查区域很大，采样工作广泛，但鲨鱼和鳐鱼的相对丰度很低，每小时有 0.28 条软骨鱼类、0.13 条鲨鱼和 0.15 条鳐鱼。当从分析中去除这两种被丢弃的物种时，这种 CPUE 减少到了世界各地 BRUVS 记录的最低丰度之一（每小时 0.11 条软骨鱼类）。这些结果可能反映了阿拉伯湾许多鲨鱼和鳐鱼种群下降的原因，包括强烈的捕捞压力和生境丧失。这些发现为未来的工作提供了一个基线，并可以为阿联酋鲨鱼和鳐鱼的保护策略提供支持。
