Age and Growth of Yellowtail Snapper, Ocyurus
chrysurus, collected from the South Eastern United States
Eden R. Garcia*, and Roger A. Rulifson
Department of Biology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC
27858; Phone: (252) 328 1846/1757; Fax: (252) 328 4265; E-mail: erg0807@mail.ecu.edu,
rulifsonr@mail.ecu.edu
Current life history information is unavailable for
yellowtail snapper, Ocyurus chrysurus, in southeastern US and
Gulf of Mexico waters for development of a fishery management plan.
This study was conducted to provide basic life history information on
age, growth, sex ratio, and total mortality rates. From 1996-1999,
over 2,000 otoliths were collected from commercial and recreational
fisheries by federal and state port agents for analysis. Marginal
incremental analysis was used to validate annular rings. Preliminary
results suggest that the major portion of fish harvested ranged in age
from 1-3 years; to date, the oldest specimens were 7 years of age.
Fish ranged in size from 217 to 742 mm TL, and 0.12 to 4.52 kg in
weight.
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