Age, growth, and mortality of starspotted smooth-hound, Mustelus manazo (Bleeker, 1854) in southern West Nusa Tenggara waters

Abstract

Mustelus manazo (Starspotted smooth-hound shark) is one of the important catch for small scale fisheries in West Nusa Tenggara. This species belongs to the family Triakidae. According to the IUCN Red List, the conservation status of this species is data deficient, which means that there is insufficient information to conduct a proper assessment of conservation status. The objective of this study is to estimate the age, growth and mortality of M. manazo in southern West Nusa Tenggara waters. Length data were collected from January to December 2016 in Tanjung Luar Port, West Nusa Tenggara. Electronic length-frequency analysis (ELEFAN) in R Statistics with package “TropFishR” was used to estimate the population parameter. Length converted catch curve analysis was used to estimate the total mortality. The results showed that von Bertalanffy growth model for male was Lt=122 (1-e(-0.1(t+0.01))), for female was Lt=130 (1-e(-0.18(t+0.02))) and for combined sex was Lt=132 (1-e(-0.1(t+0.01))). Total mortality was estimated at 0.25 year −1. The results from this study represent basic information to support fisheries management of M. manazo in Indonesia.