Abstract
Maturation and growth data for Cape hakes Merluccius capensis and M. paradoxus collected during direct research surveys over the period 1986 – 1990 are analysed. A logistic model is fitted to the fraction of mature fish by length. Males mature earlier than females, but there is little difference in length at different levels of sexual maturity for the two species. The Schnute, Von Bertalanffy and linear growth equations are fitted to the age-length data by maximizing the likelihood function. The Schnute growth equation occasionally provides a statistically superior fit to the data than the Von Bertalanffy equation. However, both these equations provide a reasonable fit over the age ranges considered. The growth curve is near linear for females, but less so for males. It appears that females grow slightly faster than males. However, the difference in growth rate is less than that suggested by some previous age-and-growth analyses. It is not possible to determine whether or not the values of the growth and ...
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