The dynamics and population structure of octopus species in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) can be studied by analyzing dispersal paralarvae mechanisms. Accordingly, this study focused on understanding octopus paralarval dispersal using numerical modeling. A Lagrangian approach was implemented using the transport model ICHTHYOP and surface currents from a GoM simulation of the HYbrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM). We modeled the dispersal of four octopus species from the GoM (Octopus “vulgaris”, Octopus insularis, Macrotritopus defilippi, and Amphioctopus burryi), considering two regions as the source of larvae in the southern GoM, namely the Yucatan shelf and the Veracruz coastal waters. Additionally, an environmental suitability analysis was incorporated using the maximum entropy (MaxEnt) model to establish potential settlement areas under the influence of the water masses’ thermal conditions. The simulation results supported the hypothesis that the abundances recorded in the GoM were influenced by the fertility (egg-laying) of each species, surface water circulation (the Loop Current, eddies, and wind), and sea surface temperature. Greater dispersal was obtained throughout the GoM for Yucatan species O. “vulgaris”, registering the highest settlement rates. In contrast, in Veracruz, O. insularis dispersed and settled only in the western portion of the GoM. The relevance of the ecological descriptors proposed to influence the dispersal and abundance of octopods throughout the GoM's coastal waters are discussed.

中文翻译：

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墨西哥湾八足类副幼虫的扩散模型

墨西哥湾 (GoM) 章鱼物种的动态和种群结构可以通过分析副幼虫的传播机制来研究。因此，本研究的重点是使用数值模型了解章鱼副幼虫的扩散。拉格朗日方法是使用传输模型 ICHTHYOP 和来自混合坐标海洋模型 (HYCOM) 的 GoM 模拟的表面流实施的。我们模拟了来自 GoM 的四种章鱼物种（Octopus “vulgaris”、Octopus insularis、Macrotritopus defilippi和Amphioctopus burryi）的扩散)，考虑到两个地区作为南部 GoM 幼虫的来源，即尤卡坦大陆架和韦拉克鲁斯沿海水域。此外，还使用最大熵 (MaxEnt) 模型进行了环境适宜性分析，以在水团热条件的影响下建立潜在的沉降区域。模拟结果支持了这样一个假设，即 GoM 中记录的丰度受每个物种的生育力（产卵）、地表水循环（环流、涡流和风）和海面温度的影响。Yucatan 物种O.“vulgaris”在整个 GoM 获得了更大的扩散，记录了最高的定居率。相比之下，在韦拉克鲁斯州，O . 岛国分散和定居仅在 GoM 的西部。讨论了拟议的生态描述符的相关性，以影响整个 GoM 沿海水域的八足动物的散布和丰度。