Global pelagic dispersal traits datasets for early-life stages of marine fishes
Abstract
Although larval stages ensure most connectivity between demersal fish populations, dispersal traits are increasingly less measured, despite the importance of correctly parametrizing biophysical models for spatial conservation planning. Moreover, existing data are scattered across a vast multidisciplinary literature. To address this mismatch between need and availability, we compiled data from 3,201 references into multiple datasets covering 35 key pelagic dispersal traits across fish early-life stages. We specifically compiled data on swimming speed, vertical position, and delayed settlement in demersal fishes (rafting or pelagic juveniles), as these traits exert a major yet understudied influence on dispersal scale. We systematically reported all descriptive statistics, enabling robust fitting of probability density functions to introduce particle-level variability in Lagrangian models. Overall, datasets comprise 32,988 species-level (1,709 for higher-taxon-level) records for 6,841 marine fish species worldwide, including 1,155 unpublished records (other teams), and 313 records newly collected during two fieldworks (Maldives & Guadeloupe). We also digitized 12,322 individual-level age-at-length/weight records from rearing experiments, enabling temperature-dependent growth model fitting to forecast global warming impacts on dispersal.
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BibTeX
@article{ruiz2026global,
title = {{Global pelagic dispersal traits datasets for early-life stages of marine fishes}},
author = {Eliot Ruiz and Marion Thémèze-Leroy and Franck Ferraton and Jacques Panfili and Jean-Dominique Durand and Michel Kulbicki and Juliette Silhol and Austin Bernard and Raphaël Thomas and Théo Morisson and Yannis Djouldem and Elvin Baptiste and Pierre-Yves Pascal and Lucie Vanalderweireldt and Sébastien Cordonnier and Amélia Chatagnon and Pierre-Louis Rault and Prune Chareyre and Leila Leon and Iris Leone and Ylana Fouchan and Stéphanie Manel and Laureline Boulanger and Benjamin Victor and Séverine Albouy-Boyer and Thomas Le Berre and Charlotte R Dromard and Loïc Pellissier and Camille Albouy and Fabien Leprieur},
journal = {Scientific Data},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1038/s41597-026-07768-1},
url = {https://hal.umontpellier.fr/hal-05766006v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Global pelagic dispersal traits datasets for early-life stages of marine fishes
AU - Eliot Ruiz
AU - Marion Thémèze-Leroy
AU - Franck Ferraton
AU - Jacques Panfili
AU - Jean-Dominique Durand
AU - Michel Kulbicki
AU - Juliette Silhol
AU - Austin Bernard
AU - Raphaël Thomas
AU - Théo Morisson
AU - Yannis Djouldem
AU - Elvin Baptiste
AU - Pierre-Yves Pascal
AU - Lucie Vanalderweireldt
AU - Sébastien Cordonnier
AU - Amélia Chatagnon
AU - Pierre-Louis Rault
AU - Prune Chareyre
AU - Leila Leon
AU - Iris Leone
AU - Ylana Fouchan
AU - Stéphanie Manel
AU - Laureline Boulanger
AU - Benjamin Victor
AU - Séverine Albouy-Boyer
AU - Thomas Le Berre
AU - Charlotte R Dromard
AU - Loïc Pellissier
AU - Camille Albouy
AU - Fabien Leprieur
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/08
JO - Scientific Data
DO - 10.1038/s41597-026-07768-1
UR - https://hal.umontpellier.fr/hal-05766006v1
AB - Although larval stages ensure most connectivity between demersal fish populations, dispersal traits are increasingly less measured, despite the importance of correctly parametrizing biophysical models for spatial conservation planning. Moreover, existing data are scattered across a vast multidisciplinary literature. To address this mismatch between need and availability, we compiled data from 3,201 references into multiple datasets covering 35 key pelagic dispersal traits across fish early-life stages. We specifically compiled data on swimming speed, vertical position, and delayed settlement in demersal fishes (rafting or pelagic juveniles), as these traits exert a major yet understudied influence on dispersal scale. We systematically reported all descriptive statistics, enabling robust fitting of probability density functions to introduce particle-level variability in Lagrangian models. Overall, datasets comprise 32,988 species-level (1,709 for higher-taxon-level) records for 6,841 marine fish species worldwide, including 1,155 unpublished records (other teams), and 313 records newly collected during two fieldworks (Maldives & Guadeloupe). We also digitized 12,322 individual-level age-at-length/weight records from rearing experiments, enabling temperature-dependent growth model fitting to forecast global warming impacts on dispersal.
SN - 2052-4463
ER -