Volume 58
Preliminary Results of Age and Growth of bonefish, Albula vulpes, in Los Roques Archipelago National Park, Venezuela
Authors
Debrot, D., J.M. Posada, M.F. Larken, J.S. Ault Download PDF Open PDF in BrowserOther Information
Date: November, 2005
Pages: 495-496
Event: Proceedings of the Fifty Eighth Annual Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute
City: San Andres
Country: Colombia
Abstract
Bonefish, Albula vulpes, supports an important recreational fishery in Los Roques Archipelago National Park. Despite the economic value of this fisheries, the life history of bonefish has not been completaly characterized. To provide information on the age and growth of bonefish in Los Roques Archipelago, ages of 91 bonefish ranging from 188 mm to 742 mm of total length were estimated from sectioned otoliths (sagittae). Preliminary results show that bonefish reach a maximum age of at least 18 years, similary to the maximum age attained by bonefish in Florida. The von Bertalanffy growth ecuation for the bonefish in our study was TL= 602.75 (1-e(-0.342 (age+.209)).