Airam Nauzet Sarmiento-Lezcano
@post doctoral researcher
Oceanographic Center of A Coruña, Spanish Institute of Oceanography A Coruña-The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)
Oceanographic Center of A Coruña, Spanish Institute of Oceanography A Coruña
RESEARCH, TEACHING, or OTHER INTERESTS
Oceanography, Ecology, Computers in Earth Sciences
Scopus Publications
Scopus Publications
G Aceves-Medina, AG Uribe-Prado, SPA Jiménez-Rosenberg, R Durazo, RJ Saldierna-Martínez, R Avendaño-Ibarra, and AN Sarmiento-Lezcano
Inter-Research Science Center
The larval fish community in the southern region of the California Current (CC) was analyzed to test the hypothesis of a northward expansion of tropical species for the summer-fall seasons of La Niña (LN) 2010-2011, The Blob 2014, and El Niño (EN) 2015-2016. Interannual temperature anomalies (-5 to +2°C), as well as decreases in chlorophyll a (68%) and zooplankton density (71%), resulted in dramatic changes in the larval fish community, such as an 82% decline in larval fish density, unprecedented for the CC. Tropical species richness increased in the north by 46%, while temperate species decreased by 65% in the south. Mesopelagic species richness and relative abundance increased in the north by 53 and 92%, respectively. In the south, the species richness of the demersal component increased up to 39%, although demersal species were co-dominant with mesopelagic species, accounting for 47% of the relative abundance compared to 49% for the mesopelagic species. The magnitude of the changes in the community was unparalleled when compared with other warming events, such as EN 1983-1984 or EN 1997-1998. The differences were probably related to the presence of The Blob, which favored the transport of oceanic species into the neritic region of the CC. In both cold and warm years, fronts and mesoscale eddies in the middle part of the Baja California Peninsula represented barriers to the latitudinal distribution of species, even during intense tropicalization processes, since no latitudinal extensions in species distribution occurred.
A.N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, G. Aceves-Medina, H. Villalobos, and S. Hernández-Trujillo
Elsevier BV
Santiago Hernández‐León, Airam Sarmiento‐Lezcano, María Couret, Laia Armengol, Ione Medina‐Suárez, Effrosyni Fatira, Víctor Tuset, Abdallahi Limam, Antonio Sánchez Díez, Javier Díaz‐Pérez,et al.
Wiley
AbstractThe biological carbon pump (BCP) is the mechanism by which the ocean transports organic matter below the mixed layer, exporting or sequestering it for years to millennia. Physical transport of dissolved and particulate organic carbon, the sinking of particles, and the carbon transported by diel and seasonal vertical migrants are the three main mechanisms of the BCP. In the study of active flux, seasonality is almost unknown and changes in ocean productivity during the annual cycle could promote differences in this transport. Here, we show the results of a cruise performed during spring in the Canary Current System, where we studied zooplankton active flux in two transects from the coastal zone off Northwest Africa toward the ocean. We measured biomass and the enzymatic activity of the electron transfer system (ETS) as a proxy for respiration in the water column down to a depth of 900 m. Compared with a previous survey during fall, we found higher values of specific ETS activity in the mesopelagic zone, promoting a higher active flux. Our results showed that the seasonality of active flux is driven not only by differences in biomass but also by differences in respiration rates in the mesopelagic zone, mainly due to differences in zooplankton body size. A review of the zooplankton active flux values around the Canary Islands showed a fourfold increase during spring compared with other seasons. This small window of higher flux should be considered in models of active carbon export in the ocean.
María Couret, José M. Landeira, Víctor M. Tuset, Airam N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, Pedro Vélez-Belchí, and Santiago Hernández-León
Elsevier BV
Airam N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, M. Pilar Olivar, María José Caballero, María Couret, Santiago Hernández-León, Arturo Castellón, and Marian Peña
Frontiers Media SA
Non-migratory bristlemouth fishes (Cyclothone spp.) are the most abundant vertebrates on Earth and play an important role in the biological carbon pump by remineralizing organic carbon in deep ecosystems. Acoustic data and net sampling are often used in combination to estimate fish and zooplankton biomass, but this procedure may be subject to several sources of error when applied to mesopelagic species. For instance, the allocation of echoes to species has often been biased by not considering Cyclothone spp. due to the use of nets targeting larger fish. Furthermore, the acoustic properties of the target organisms must be well understood to convert acoustic density into numerical density. The characteristics of a fish’s swimbladder are the most relevant features necessary to assess its acoustic properties. This study provides information on the swimbladder properties of six Cyclothone species inhabiting the meso- and bathypelagic layers in the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea, including swimbladder location within the body, fat tissue content, morphology, morphometry (only available for C. braueri and C. pseudopallida), and fish body-mass density (only available for C. braueri, C. pseudopallida, C. pallida, and C. pygmaea). The studied species showed a functional physoclistous swimbladder, with well-developed gas glands and rete mirabile and numerous capillaries in the case of the shallower species C. braueri and C. pseudopallida (mainly distributed from 400 to 600 m depth), and a fat-invested swimbladder in species with deeper vertical distribution (C. livida, C. microdon, C. pallida, and C. pygmaea). The fat content in the swimbladder (C. pallida and C. microdon) increased with depth and latitude, reducing the space in the swimbladder that could contain gas. Changes in swimbladder size and volume during growth were analyzed for shallower species, where swimbladder volume and equivalent radius followed negative allometric growth in relation to body length. Finally, values of body-mass density (ρ) and gas content required for neutral buoyancy (VG) were estimated for C. braueri and C. pygmaea collected between 350 and 550 m (ρ = 1.052–1.072 g·cm−3, VG = 2%–4%; ρ = 1.052–1.062 g·cm−3, VG = 3.6%), and for C. pallida and C. pseudopallida sampled in the 450–700 m layer (ρ = 1.052–1.062 g·cm−3, VG = 2.6–3.1%; ρ = 1.052–1.062 g·cm−3, VG = 2.8%–3.25%). Results in this study highlight the change in scattering behavior of Cyclothone species from gas-bearing organisms (those that contain gas in their swimbladder) in the upper mesopelagic zone to the fluid-like scattering (with fat-filled swimbladders) of the deeper and northern individuals. The data presented in this manuscript are important for parametrizing acoustic backscattering models built to estimate the echo of Cyclothone species, although further work is needed, particularly for individuals with partially invested swimbladders with an irregular fat-free shape.
Airam N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, María Couret, Antoni Lombarte, María Pilar Olivar, José María Landeira, Santiago Hernández-León, and Víctor M. Tuset
MDPI AG
Most mesopelagic fishes perform large diel vertical migrations from the deep-sea zone to the surface. Although there is a trade-off between a higher food availability at the upper layers and an energy cost and predation risk, incursion towards the surface also implies a transport by currents, where the fish are exposed to a stranding risk on the coast. Here, we reported the first documented stranding of mesopelagic fishes along the southeast shore of Gran Canaria Island. Our study hypothesized that (1) the influence of the Canary Current, (2) the dominant incidence of the Trade Winds during summer, and (3) the presence of an upwelling filament coupled with an anticyclonic eddy south of Gran Canaria Island were the causative mechanisms of the strandings. Diaphus dumerilii (Myctophidae family) was the main species found as observed from an external morphological analysis using traditional taxonomy. The otolith contour analysis suggested the presence of other Diaphus spp. and Lobianchia dofleini. Nevertheless, the otolith morphological features described in the literature suggested that all the specimens were actually D. dumerelii. Errors in the identification were mainly due to the high intraspecific variability found in the otolith morphology. Even so, two patterns of oval and elliptic shapes were described with significant differences in its morphometry.
M. Pilar Olivar, Arturo Castellón, Ana Sabatés, Airam Sarmiento-Lezcano, Mikhail Emelianov, Ainhoa Bernal, Yang Yang, Roland Proud, and Andrew S. Brierley
Frontiers Media SA
Mesopelagic fish populations are characterised by high species richness and abundance, and have been identified as important contributors to the active carbon fluxes in the open ocean. We report variability in communities of mesopelagic fish between five zones around the Iberian Peninsula, i.e. Balears and Alboran in the Mediterranean, and Cadiz, Lisboa and Galicia in the Atlantic. Day and night samples were collected from 7 layers of the water column with a midwater trawl fitted with a multisampler. Temperature and salinity regimes were very different on the Mediterranean and Atlantic sides of the peninsula, with much higher values through the entire water column in the Mediterranean, characterized by a strong pycnocline. The highest productivity was observed off Lisboa, where Chlorophyll a concentrations were two orders of magnitude higher than in any other zone. Samples from the western Mediterranean held 22 fish species, while 67 were found in the Atlantic. The lowest diversity and the highest dominance were observed in Balears, and the highest diversity in Cadiz zone. In all zones, but particularly in those in the Mediterranean, mesopelagic populations were dominated by a high number of small fish with low individual biomasses. The species Benthosema glaciale, Cyclothone pygmaea and Ceratoscopelus maderensis were common in the Mediterranean populations, whereas in the Atlantic, Cyclothone microdon/livida, Valenciennellus tripunctulatus, Ceratoscopelus warmingii and Benthosema suborbitale were the most common species. Temperature and salinity (both at surface and in the mesopelagic zone) were the main environmental factors explaining variability in assemblage composition. A persistent (day-night) deep scattering layer was observed using the vessel-based echosounder in all zones, and was comprised primarily of the gonostomatid Cyclothone spp. Night-time echosounder observations of scattering layers near the surface were observed in Balears, Alboran, Cadiz and Lisboa, where night surface net collections indicated that Myctophidae, Stomiidae and Phosichthyidae migration extended to the upper 100 m. Sternoptychids and the gonostomatid Sigmops elongatus seldom reached the upper 100 m in their night vertical migrations. Night stratified hauls of 30 m resolution carried out in the epipelagic zone showed that abundances maxima of migratory fish coincided with the location of the Chlorophyll a maxima.
Airam N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, Geraldine Busquets-Vass, Uriel Rubio-Rodríguez, M. Pilar Olivar, Marian Peña, Ione Medina-Suárez, Eduardo González-Rodríguez, Jaime Gómez-Gutiérrez, Carlos J. Robinson, and Santiago Hernández-León
Elsevier BV
Airam N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, M. Pilar Olivar, Marian Peña, José M. Landeira, Laia Armengol, Ione Medina-Suárez, Arturo Castellón, and Santiago Hernández-León
Elsevier BV
Uriel Rubio-Rodríguez, Carlos A. Godínez-Pérez, and Airam N. Sarmiento-Lezcano
Pensoft Publishers
The biological information for many species of the family Nomeidae is scarce, given the difficulty of capturing these species in the oceanic environment. A specimen of the twospine driftfish, Psenes sio Haedrich, 1970, was collected in the northern Gulf of California with a bottom trawl net at the depth of more than 250 m. This specimen represents the northernmost record of this species to date, and provides valuable information on this fish, such as maximum weight and height recorded, vertical distribution and latitudinal range, in addition to meristic counts and body morphometry.
Airam Guerra-Marrero, Lorena Couce-Montero, David Jiménez-Alvarado, Ana Espino-Ruano, Raibel Núñez-González, Airam Sarmiento-Lezcano, Ángelo Santana del Pino, and José J. Castro
Elsevier BV
, Héctor Villalobos, Juan Zwolinski, Carlos Godínez-Pérez, Violeta González-Máynez, Fernando Manini-Ramos, Melissa Mayorga-Martínez, William Michaels, Mitzi Palacios-Higuera, Uriel Rubio-Rodríguez,et al.
The Oceanography Society
Worldwide, marine protected areas (MPAs) are increasingly created to protect and restore selected parts of the ocean and to enhance recreation, fishing, and sustainable resources. However, this process has outpaced the development and implementation of methods for assessing and monitoring these habitats. Here, we combine data from an echosounder, a conductivity-temperature-depth probe, and underwater cameras to efficiently survey El Bajo Espíritu Santo Seamount, located in the southwest Gulf of California, Mexico. Results include a bathymetric map detailing a ridge with three peaks; oceanographic profiles showing a 35 m deep mixed layer and anoxic conditions below 200 m; mean target strength estimates for Pacific creolefish, Paranthias colonus (–34.8 dB re 1 m2, for mean total length ~33 cm), and finescale triggerfish, Balistes polylepis (–39.8 dB re 1 m2, 38 cm); baseline estimates of biomass for both species (55.7 t, 95% CI = 30.3–81.2 t and 38.9 t, 95% CI = 21.1–56.6 t, respectively) found only in the oxygenated water near the top of the seamount; and indications that these reef fishes grazed on zooplankton in the mixed layer. We conclude that acoustic-optical sampling is a practical approach for obtaining baseline information on MPAs to efficiently monitor changes resulting from natural and anthropogenic processes.
A. N. Sarmiento-Lezcano, R. Triay-Portella, A. Guerra-Marrero, D. Jiménez-Alvarado, U. Rubio-Rodríguez, R. Núñez-González`, F. Bordes, and J. J. Castro
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
AbstractNotoscopelus resplendens is an abundant myctophid in the region of the Central-Eastern Atlantic. As with a majority of other myctophid species, this species performs vertical migration, playing a key role in the oceanic food web and in carbon sequestration. We examined the reproductive biology of N. resplendens based on 579 specimens caught between 1997 and 2002 off the Canary Islands. We found that the maximum standard length (SL) was lower than the size reported by other authors. The sex ratio was not different from 1:1. The average size at first maturity (L50) was higher in females (60.34 mm SL) than in males (56.61 mm SL). The gonadosomatic index (GSI) at 50% sexual maturity in females was higher than that in males. The reproductive activity was observed from January to April, while from May onwards, the majority of fish caught were in the process of maturation. The macroscopic scale of maturation was validated through the histological analysis of the ovarian development. The batch fecundity was related to the standard length, with an average of 1068.69 ± 369.84 eggs/spawn. These first data obtained for N. resplendens indicated that it is a batch spawner with asynchronous ovarian development.
David Jiménez-Alvarado, Airam Guerra-Marrero, Airam Sarmiento-Lezcano, Eva K.M. Meyers, and José J. Castro
Elsevier BV
Airam Guerra-Marrero, Vicente Hernández-García, Airam Sarmiento-Lezcano, David Jiménez-Alvarado, Angelo Santana-del Pino, and José J Castro
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Abstract Abralia veranyi and Abraliopsis morisii were the most abundant cephalopods caught during epipelagic and mesopelagic surveys off the Canary Islands and accounted for 26% and 35% of the cephalopod catch, respectively. Diel vertical migration patterns were observed in both species. At night, A. veranyi was recorded at depths as shallow as 38–90 m, whereas Abraliopsis morisii occurred at depths of 98–219 m. As individuals grow in mantle length, their diet changes substantially. Abraliopsis morisii showed ontogenetic shifts at 22.9 mm and 35.3 mm dorsal mantle length (DML), while A. veranyi showed ontogenetic shifts at 20.5 mm and 30.9 mm DML. Prior to the first ontogenic shift, both species fed mainly on copepods and mysids. After this shift they fed on larger prey, such as decapods and fish; the diets of larger individuals also contained cephalopods.
David Jiménez‐Alvarado, Airam Sarmiento‐Lezcano, Airam Guerra‐Marrero, Fernando Tuya, Ángelo Santana Del Pino, Michael J. Sealey, and José J. Castro
Wiley
In this study, we used a historical collection of photographs taken by recreational fishers from 1940 to 2014, at the island of Gran Canaria, to show both a significant decrease in the mean total length of Epinephelus marginatus and a concurrent change in the composition of captures. Before 1980, the mean total length of fish caught and photographed was c. 100 cm, while after 2009 this was typically < 40 cm. Before 1980, the predominant captured species was E. marginatus (an apex predator), but currently the majority of catches are of omnivorous species, in particular the parrotfish, Sparisoma cretense and seabreams Diplodus spp. Overall, integration of these results indicates a qualitative and quantitative variation in captures of recreational fishers, probably as a sign of change in ecological balances and the overfished status of many target species.
Airam-Nauzet Sarmiento-Lezcano, Raül Triay-Portella, José Juan Castro, Uriel Rubio-Rodríguez, and José G. Pajuelo
Elsevier BV