Spatiotemporal Trends in Abundance and Life History of Gray Triggerfish Balistes Capriscus Off the Southeast U.S. Atlantic Coast

Gray Triggerfish, Balistes capriscus, is a reef-associated fish common off the southeastern U.S. Atlantic coast (SEUSA).  Interest in harvest of this species commercially and recreationally has increased over the past two decades, especially in light of stringent management of other preferred species.  This species currently is undergoing a benchmark stock assessment and a regional fishery-independent index of relative abundance supports that the population in the SEUSA has been depressed in recent years relative to the 1990s.  The SEUSA Gray Triggerfish center of distribution is found off South Carolina, but they are common in fishery-independent trap catches from Cape Hatteras, NC, to Port St. Lucie, FL.  There also is a strong correlation between depth and both abundance and size.  We examined whether regional population trends are consistent among all areas or if increases or decreases in abundance co-occur with range expansions or contractions, respectively.  We also used length and age data to examine the relationship between population size, life history, and area.  We tested whether growth rates vary among areas that show different population trends to test for variation in density-dependent growth or recruitment.  Overall, these analyses indicated areas where this species is relatively robust to exploitation or relatively vulnerable.