Reconstructing habitat use of Coilia mystus and Coilia ectenes of the Yangtze River estuary, and of Coilia ectenes of Taihu Lake, based on otolith strontium and calcium

The habitat use and migratory patterns of Osbeck's grenadier anchovy Coilia mystus in the Yangtze estuary and the estuarine tapertail anchovy Coilia ectenes from the Yangtze estuary and Taihu Lake, China, were studied by examining the environmental signatures of strontium and calcium in their otoliths using electron probe microanalysis. The results indicated that Taihu C. ectenes utilizes only freshwater habitats, whereas the habitat use patterns of Yangtze C. ectenes and C. mystus were much more flexible, apparently varying among fresh, brackish and marine areas. The present study suggests that the spawning populations of Yangtze C. ectenes and C. mystus in the Yangtze estuary consist of individuals with different migration histories, and individuals of these two Yangtze Coilia species seem to use a variety of different habitats during the non-spawning seasons. (c) 2006 The Authors Journal compilation (c) 2006 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.