Abstract

Reproductive potential is an important component of fisheries management that can help identify either stock recovery or signs of overexploitation. Without a healthy spawning population a stock may have a difficult time recovering from overfishing (Trippel 1995). The red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) fishery is especially sensitive to overfishing because the species is long lived (50+ years) and reaches peak fecundity at over 10 years of age, although red snapper can mature as early as age 2 (Collins et al. 1996). Red snapper are broadcast gonochoristic spawners with the ability to spawn multiple times during a season. Juvenile mortality is high and the possibility of an egg surviving to become a reproductively active adult and contribute to the population is very low. The recreational and commercial fisheries for red snapper are economi-cally important to Louisiana and other states along the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). Therefore, a substantial, healthy spawning population of red snapper would greatly benefit both the species and the managers of this species.

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