Relationships amongst length, weight and growth of north-eastern New Zealand reef fishes

Abstract

This paper examines relationships amongst length, weight and growth parameters of teleost fishes found in shallow north-eastern New Zealand waters. Length–weight equations are presented for 51 species. Fish growth was described using the von Bertalanffy growth parameters L_∞ (asymptotic length) and K (growth constant), which were available for 19 species. Literature-derived values for adult body length showed a strong positive correlation with L_∞ (r² = 0.89), which, after conversion to weight, was strongly negatively correlated with K (r ² = 0.80). Regression equations describing these relationships can be used to predict L_∞ and K for fish species lacking such growth data.