Distribution of Red Drum Spawning Sites Identified by a Towed Hydrophone Array

Knowledge about fish spawning habits and habitats is an essential component of fisheries management. This paper reports on a survey of potential spawning sites for red drum Sciaenops ocellatus in the nearshore western Gulf of Mexico conducted using a towed hydrophone array. Two classes of red drum sounds could be distinguished. One was a low-frequency rumble with a prominent energy peak at approximately 150 Hz. The other was a clearly distinguishable call made by individual or small groups of red drum. Calls of individual red drum were detected along most sections of all transects. There were extensive areas along each transect where no close drumming was heard and where drumming rates were primarily low (