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The shovelnose guitarfish Rhinobatos productus is the most abundant species in the artisanal ray fishery of the Gulf of California. This ray is captured when it approaches the coast for reproductive purposes and is highly vulnerable to gillnets used in the fishery. Despite the high production of elasmobranchs in the Gulf of California, studies on reproductive and technological aspects are scarce. In the present study, we analyzed the interaction between size-at-maturity and size-selectivity, which are represented by a logistic function and gamma distribution, respectively. Interaction of such vectors is applied to the size-frequency distribution of the population monitored in Sonora (Mexico) during 1998-2004. The effect of maturity ogives revealed a proportion of mature individuals of 68% and 83% for males and females, respectively. Gillnet selectivities with different mesh sizes had a varied effect on the size structure given that males reach smaller sizes than females. For males, selectivity curves of nets with mesh sizes of 3.5, 5.0, 6.0, 8.0, and 8.5 inches reduced the original length-frequency distribution by 59%, 9%, 8%, 85%, and 94%, respectively. The same nets reduced the original length-frequency distribution of females by 79%, 41%, 16%, 48%, and 63%. Gillnets with mesh sizes of 5.0 and 6.0 inches had higher selectivity for both sexes coinciding in the size interval of maximum abundance. The results of the present study revealed a negative impact of the fishery on the adult structure of the population and to a lesser extent on juveniles. A demographic analysis of this population incorporating both maturity and selectivity vectors will allow determining the resilience to the current exploitation pattern by elasticity analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Daily commercial fishing data were used to determine the relative abundance of the shovelnose guitarfish Rhinobatos productus (Ayres, 1856) in Bahia Almejas, Baja California Sur (Mexico), from August 1991 to December 1995. Data suggest that seasonal trends exist in the catch, with maximum values from May to August. In order to determine if the seasonality is a result of variations in the abundance, catch effort data (number of nets laid) were included in the calculations and the results were expressed in terms of catch per unit effort (CPUE; org/net/week and org/nef/month). The cyclical behavior of R. produetus abundance follows lunar cycles, sea temperature and probably food availability, all critical factors if we consider that the species uses the area for its reproduction. The species enters massively into the bay during one month and leaves in just two weeks. An alternate trend was identified in the relative abundance between years, with the uneven years (1993 and 1995) as the abundant ones. The relative abundanceof R. productus increased from 1991 to 1995, even with the respective decreases in the even years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]