Studies on southern Australian Abalone (Genus Haliotis). VIII. Growth of juvenile H. laevigata

Abstract

The growth of juvenile H. laevigata was studied by analysis of sequences of length-frequency distributions obtained in below- and above-boulder habitats at West Island, South Australia. The mean growth rate overall is 1.69 mm month^-1 and is linear with length for the first 5 years, but thereafter declines with increasing length. The mean growth rate of four groups of marked H. laevigata aged 1 and 3 years is 1.6-2.1 mm month^-1, and thus supports the estimation of growth rate from analysis of length-frequency distributions.