Migration, whether for the purpose of predator avoidance, foraging, or reproduction, results in the movement of individuals from one habitat to another spatially distinct habitat. Many tropical marine fishes migrate from foraging grounds to form spawning aggregations that are spatially and temporally distinct, highlighting a critical time and area for fish reproduction. In The Bahamas, bonefish (Albula vulpes) form spawning aggregations, migrating from nearshore flats and mangrove creeks to deep water shelf edges to spawn. Bonefish support a catch-and-release recreational fishery valued at approximately $141 million USD annually in The Bahamas. To manage and protect this economically-important fishery, the purpose of this thesis was to identify and describe migration patterns of bonefish on the Bahamian island of Eleuthera. Six spawning aggregation sites on four Bahamian islands have been identified, but recent findings indicate that islands may support multiple migration routes and aggregation sites. From 2015 to 2017, 78 bonefish were tagged in 11 main foraging grounds across five regions on Eleuthera and tracked using broad-scale acoustic telemetry arrays. This study identified four new migration routes and aggregation sites on Eleuthera. Migration routes on Eleuthera were shorter than those documented on other Bahamian islands and bonefish made repeated migrations throughout the study period. Bonefish migrated between October and June; migration activity was correlated with the first half of the lunar cycle, high tidal range, colder temperatures, and calm weather. The areas identified in this study should be protected from development and fishing pressures to ensure future reproductive success of bonefish in The Bahamas.
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