Ecosystem trophic structure and energy flux in the Northen Gulf of California, Mexico

Using the Ecopath with Ecosim software, a trophic structure model of the Northern Gulf of California was constructed to represent the main biomass flows in the system. It was based mostly on bibliographic data and provides a snapshot of how the ecosystem operates. The model consisted of 29 functiona...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Morales Zarate, M.V., Arreguín Sánchez, Francisco, López Martínez, Juana, Lluch Cota, Salvador E.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2004
País:México
Institución:Instituto Politécnico Nacional
Repositorio:Repositorio Digital del IPN
OAI Identifier:oai:www.repositoriodigital.ipn.mx:123456789/13341
Acceso en línea:http://www.repositoriodigital.ipn.mx/handle/123456789/13341
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:fishery
trophic structure
Ecological model
Ecopath
Specialist
Biosphere Reserve
Descripción
Sumario:Using the Ecopath with Ecosim software, a trophic structure model of the Northern Gulf of California was constructed to represent the main biomass flows in the system. It was based mostly on bibliographic data and provides a snapshot of how the ecosystem operates. The model consisted of 29 functional groups. The total system throughput was 6633 tonnes/km2 per year, from which 51.7% are for internal consumption, 20.0% are for respiration, 16.0% becomes detritus, and 12.2% are removed through commercial fishing. Main results show that most groups were impacted more by predation and competition than by fishing pressure, and that there are some characteristics that indicate that use of the ecosystem is balanced.