title: Is the Great Barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda) a reef fish or a pelagic fish? The phylogeographic perspective.
abstract: Current taxonomy indicates a single global species of the Great Barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda) despite differences in color and behavior between Atlantic and Pacific forms. To investigate these differences and qualify the dispersal characteristics of this unique coastal- pelagic teleost (bony fish), we conducted a global phylogeographic survey of 246 specimens from thirteen sampling locations using a 629-base pair fragment of mtDNA cytochromeb. Data indicate high overall gene flow in the Indo-Pacific over large distances (>16,500 km) bridging several biogeographic barriers. The West Atlantic population contains an mtDNA lineage that is divergent from the Indo-Pacific (d= 1.9%), while the East Atlantic (N= 23) has two mutations (d= 0.6%) apart from the Indo-Pacific. While we cannot rule out distinct evolutionary partitions among ocean basins based on behavior, coloration, and near-monophyly between Atlantic and Indo-Pacific subpopulations, more investigation is required before taxonomic status is revised. Overall, the pattern of high global dispersal and connectivity inS. barracudamore closely resembles those reported for large oceanic predators than reef-associated teleosts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, University of Hawaii at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA.
authors.forename: Toby S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Daly-Engel
authors.affiliation: Bishop Museum, 1525 Bernice Street, Honolulu, HI 96817-2704, USA.
authors.forename: John E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Randall
authors.affiliation: Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawaii, Kaneohe, HI 96744, USA.
authors.forename: Brian W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Bowen