Publications (1)0 Total impact ABSTRACT: a b s t r a c t With
the persistence of the sub-Saharan drought since the 1970s, the
Sine Saloum estuary (Senegal) – the second largest coastal
Biosphere Reserve of West-Africa – has become an ''inverse
estuary'' and hypersaline (salinity > 60) in its upstream part.
A one-year survey was conducted from April 2007 to March 2008 at
eight sites distributed along the salinity gradient, to
investigate the recruitment patterns of young-of-the-year
mugilids in such an impacted ecosystem. Fishes were sampled
monthly with a conical net and a beach seine in salinities
ranging from 31 to 104. Samples were identified to the species
level. For the smallest individuals (<20 mm SL) a PCR–RFLP
technique, developed on the mito-chondrial 16S ribosomal RNA
region, was used for identification. A total of 8438 juveniles
belonging to six of the eight species of mugilids known for the
tropical Eastern Atlantic were collected: Mugil bananensis,
Mugil cephalus, Mugil curema, Liza dumerili, Liz