A Note of a Unique Inland, Saline Water Fishery: Brine Flies (Diptera: Ephydridae) of Lake Cuitzeo, Mexico

Abstract

Fisheries in Cuitzeo, the second largest Mexican lake, used to take place on the permanent freshwater East and Central Basins as opposed to the temporal, saline, and initially thought barren West Basin. The 1980 fisheries collapse forced fishers to look for non-conventional fishing products elsewhere in the lake. The West Basin’s temporal, saline-alkaline, and shallow water provides exceptional habitat for ephydrids to flourish. Locally known as “pupa”, ephydrids are collected in large numbers. Although consumed since pre-Hispanic times, no other commercial fisheries of ephydrids are known worldwide. This study records the species composition and abundance of the “pupa” throughout an annual cycle in the West Basin, where fisheries occur. Two species were found: Ephydra hians and Lamproscatella muria. Ephydrids co-occurred in June and July at the end of the dry season when salinity was highest. L. muria was more abundant (954 ± 2385 ind m−2) than E. hians (94 ± 38 ind m−2). The relatively low salinity of the West Basin favoured L. muria over E. hians, which prefers higher salinities. This “pupa” fishery is still unpredictable due to the astatic nature of the lake, and hence limited economic importance to the local fishers.