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Age, growth and longevity of the grey triggerfish, Balistes capriscus Gmelin, 1789 (Teleostei, Balistidae) in the Gulf of Gabès, southern Tunisia, Mediterranean Sea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2015

Hichem Kacem ,
Lobna Boudaya  and
Lassâd Neifar
Hichem Kacem*
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques, Département des Sciences de la Vie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Sfax, BP 1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia
Lobna Boudaya
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques, Département des Sciences de la Vie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Sfax, BP 1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia
Lassâd Neifar
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques, Département des Sciences de la Vie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Sfax, BP 1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: H. Kacem, Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques, Département des Sciences de la Vie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Sfax, BP 1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia email: hichemkacem2007@yahoo.fr
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Abstract

The age and growth parameters of grey triggerfish, Balistes capriscus from the Gulf of Gabès, southern Tunisia, Mediterranean Sea, were estimated from the first dorsal spine sections of 463 specimens (206 males and 257 females), whose fork length was between 139 and 427 mm and the total weight ranged from 90.04 to 1967.41 g. The monthly percentage of specimens having a terminal translucent zone has indicated that the growth zone is formed once a year, during the cold season (February). The von Bertalanffy growth equations were: FL = 420.7 [1 − e−0.233(t + 0.123)] and FL = 417.0 [1 − e−0.238(t + 0.074)], for males and females, respectively. The longevity estimated was 13 years old for both sexes. The instantaneous mortality rates were estimated to 0.23 for males and 0.24 for females. The weight–length relationships of the grey triggerfish were Wt = 21.510−3 LF3.046 and Wt = 41.010−3 LF2.835, for males and females, respectively.

Keywords

Balistes capriscusagegrowthlongevityGulf of GabèsTunisia
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 95 , Issue 5 , August 2015 , pp. 1061 - 1067
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2015 

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