Role of mangrove habitat as a nursery for juvenile spiny lobster, Panulirus argus, in Belize

The use of mangrove prop roots and associated coralline habitats by Caribbean spiny lobsters was investigated near two types of mangrove islands in Belize. Spiny lobsters sheltered among mangrove prop roots, in undercut peat banks and under corals near islands, and they ranged in size from newly recruited juveniles to subadults. Lobsters preferred to shelter under large stony corals, but their use of mangrove prop roots nd undercut peat banks increased when the density of corals was low. Den residence time and distance moved within a site were similar at islands isolated by deep water channels and islands separated by shallow seagrass beds, but as a consequence of high immigration rates, population sizes were highest near shallow islands. Predation on newly settled juveniles was greater in seagrass and coral crevices than in mangrove prop roots, whereas the survival of larger juveniles was higher in mangroves and coral patch reefs than in seagrass. These results suggest that mangrove habitats may function as a nursery for juvenile spiny lobsters but that the use of this habitat depends on shelter characteristics and the isolation of islands.