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Validation of annulus in otolith and estimation of growth rate for Japanese eel Anguilla japonica in tropical southern Taiwan

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Abstract

The age of Japanese eels (Anguilla japonica) is often estimated from otoliths, but this method has not been fully validated, particularly in tropical areas where the annulus in otolith is considered to be less distinct than in temperate areas. To validate the annuli in Japanese eel otoliths from southern Taiwan, known-age (2 year-old) cultured eels from an eel farm and wild eels from Kao-Ping River were collected. It was found that 26 out of 31 cultured eels (83.9%) showed two clear annuli and the remained 5 eels showed either one or three annuli. The mean (± SD) age of the cultured eels was 1.97 ± 0.4 years. Meanwhile, a clear peak in the mean monthly marginal increment ratio of the otolith in wild yellow and silver eels occurred once a year during winter (November to March). The annual deposition of presumed annuli in otoliths of Japanese eel was validated and the age and growth rate estimation for Japanese eels in the tropical southern Taiwan is deemed feasible. The growth rate of cultured eels was significantly faster than that of wild eels, but it did not differ significantly between sexes for wild silver, yellow or cultured eels. The von Bertalanffy Growth Function parameters (K, \(L_\infty \) and t 0 ) of the wild eels were estimated as 0.114 ± 0.028 year−1, 1178 ± 171 mm and −0.8 ± 0.2 years, respectively.

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Acknowledgements

This study was financially supported by the National Science Council of R.O.C. (NSC94-2313-B-002-070). We thank colleagues in the Laboratory of Fisheries Biology, Institute of Fisheries Science, National Taiwan University, S-L Chang and his colleagues in the Division of Biotechnology, Fisheries Research Institute of Taiwan for sampling arrangement and help with field work. We also thank local fishermen for their cooperation during specimen collection and for providing information about the eel fishery in Kao-Ping River. We would like to express special thanks to B. Jessop, Department of Fisheries and Ocean, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Canada, and two anonymous reviews for helpful comments on an early draft of this manuscript.

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  1. Institute of Fishery Science, College of Life Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan, ROC

    Yu-Jia Lin & Wann-Nian Tzeng

  2. Department of Life Science, College of Life Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan, ROC

    Wann-Nian Tzeng

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  1. Yu-Jia Lin
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Correspondence to Wann-Nian Tzeng.

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Lin, YJ., Tzeng, WN. Validation of annulus in otolith and estimation of growth rate for Japanese eel Anguilla japonica in tropical southern Taiwan. Environ Biol Fish 84, 79–87 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-008-9391-1

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