First data on age and sexual maturity of the Tristan klipfish, Bovichtus diacanthus (Bovichtidae) from Tristan da Cunha, South Atlantic

Abstract

AbstractThe Tristan klipfish, Bovichtus diacanthus, an endemic species at Tristan da Cunha Island was successfully aged using whole sagittal otoliths. The annulation pattern was clear, resulting in an alternating combination of opaque and translucent zones that form an annulus. Although sampling limitations did not allow direct validation of annual ring deposition, most otoliths showed a translucent edge, perhaps suggesting that the deposition of translucent zones is a synchronous process which takes place in winter coincident with the spawning season. The reliability of ageing methodology was supported by the good agreement between readings. The maximum age was estimated to be five years in females and four years in males. In order to increase the small number of direct readings, the length at age was back-calculated for each fish by fitting growth curves. The resulting growth of B.diacanthus was described by the von Bertalanffy growth model, as summarized by the following parameters: L∞ = 207.1 mm TL, k = 0.49 per year, and t0 = 0.04 years. The size at which 50% of the population spawns for the first time was c. 147 mm, corresponding to 2.5 years of age.