The fish community by-catch to the shrimp fishery in the Western coast of Campeche, Mexico

The shrimp fishery has been the most important activity in (lie south of Gulf of Mexico by its high economic Value and production level. The by-catch is abundant and diverse conformed mainly by fish. The objective of this job is to describe the composition, abundance and diversity of the fish community by-catch to the shrimp fishery. The objective specie in this fishery is the seven beards shrimp Xiphopenaeus kroyeri. Between February 2003 and February 2004 were carried out experimental trawls in 37 sites with a montly frequency in the western Campeche coast. The fishing gear was a trawl net locally named "chango", it wits operated by 12 minutes. The environmental parameters were registered and the capture was processed in the laboratory. The abundance and diversity parameters of the fish community were determined, and the dominant species were identified. 48.933 fish with a total weight of 625.4 kg were captured and 94 species were identified. The abundance shows maximum peaks en May and September. lit spatial scale. the abundance was homogeneous between the coastal sample sites but is affected by the depth. Near to the mouth of the Grijalva-Usumacinta system and inside the Terminos Lagoon the abundance increases considerably. 11 species has ecological dominance and the catfish Cathorops melanopus is the most important with it numerical abundance over the 40% regarding the total of the capture.