Lagrangian Drifter Dispersion in the Mona Passage

Estefania Quinones-Melendez, University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez, Department of Marine Sciences, Mayaguez, PR, United States, Miguel Canals, UPRM Center for Applied Ocean Science and Engineering, Mayaguez, PR, United States and Jorge E Capella, Caribbean Coastal Ocean Observing System (CariCOOS), Mayaguez, PR
Abstract:
The Mona Passage is dominated by very complex circulation patterns caused by the interaction between strong tidal currents, large-scale circulation and mesoscale phenomena. Seventeen drifters were deployed on or near the Mona Passage between February 2015 and August 2015. These drifters transmitted their location every half hour and were able to provide continuous data for a maximum of two months. These deployments aimed to determine the fate and transport of fish eggs and early larvae from several marine protected areas (MPAs) off the west coast of Puerto Rico. These drifters have allowed for the direct observation of the main features of the circulation in the Mona Passage. In this study, single and two-particle dispersion statistics are examined in order to understand the dispersion field in the region. The implications of these results for understanding larval dispersal and hydrodynamic connectivity in the region are discussed.
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