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Presentation
Age and Growth of Hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus) in Southeast Florida
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
  • Ian A. Towne, Nova Southeastern University
  • Angela Collins, University of Florida
  • David Kerstetter, Nova Southeastern University
  • Paul T. Arena, Nova Southeastern University
Event Name/Location
148th Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries Society, Atlantic City, New Jersey, August 19-23, 2018
Presentation Date
8-22-2018
Document Type
Conference Proceeding
ORCID ID
0000-0002-4440-8767
ResearcherID
I-5396-2012
Description

Hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus) is an economically important reef fish, which has become a high interest to fisheries management due to the overwhelming evidence of overfishing. The primary objective of this study was to determine age and growth (via sagittal otoliths) of hogfish in southeast Florida, where a paucity of data exist. Hogfish were compared by region and by the three reef tracts in Broward County, Florida. Over 325 hogfish were collected from 2016-2017. Findings indicated, the maximum potential fork length increased from the Florida Keys (336mm) to southeast Florida (414mm). Additionally, hogfish growth rates were significantly different for each reef tract in Broward County. The most accessible reef tract (ca. 4-6m deep) had a signifigantly higher (p<0.001) growth rate than the outermost reef (ca. 15-25m deep). The maximum potential fork length decreased with reef tract depth (857mm, 420mm, 352mm) while the mean age (age 3, 4, 5), maximum age (age 9,10,12), and annual survival rate (42%, 65%, 73%) increased with reef depth. The results of this study provide vital base line age growth data for hogfish in the Southeast Florida region just prior to the implementation of a ten year stock recovery plan.

Citation Information
Ian A. Towne, Angela Collins, David Kerstetter and Paul T. Arena. "Age and Growth of Hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus) in Southeast Florida" (2018)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/paul-arena/25/