Evaluation of the effects of otolith sampling strategies and ageing error on estimation of the age composition and growth curve for Pacific bluefin tuna Thunnus orientalis
Yi-Jay Chang
A B D , Jhen Hsu A , Jen-Chieh Shiao A B and Shui-Kai Chang C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Institute of Oceanography, National Taiwan University, Number 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 10617, Taiwan.
B Institute of Fisheries Science, National Taiwan University, Number 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 10617, Taiwan.
C Institute of Marine Affairs, National Sun Yat-sen University, 70 Lienhai Road, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan.
D Corresponding author. Email: yjchang@ntu.edu.tw
Marine and Freshwater Research 70(12) 1838-1849 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF18241
Submitted: 4 July 2018 Accepted: 13 April 2019 Published: 8 July 2019
Journal Compilation © CSIRO 2019 Open Access CC BY-NC-ND
Abstract
The age composition of the catch and the growth curve of a stock are fundamentally important in fish stock assessment, but these estimates are subject to various sources of uncertainty. Using the Pacific bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis) fisheries in the waters off Taiwan as an example, we developed a Monte Carlo simulation model to evaluate the effects of four otolith sampling methods (random otolith sampling, ROS; fixed otolith sampling, FOS; proportional otolith sampling, POS; and reweighting otolith sampling, REW), and ageing error (bias and imprecision) on estimations of age composition and growth curves. The results indicated that FOS has the lowest sampling accuracy, POS performs the best and that ROS is a more efficient method with lower estimation error. For an imprecise reader, the centre (median) of multiple age reads is a useful method to obtain accurate and precise estimates. Ageing bias had greater effects on the estimation of age composition and growth parameters than ageing imprecision or the selection of otolith sampling methods. In most cases, 500 otoliths should be an adequate sample size and could be the guideline for the biological sampling program of the T. orientalis Catch Documentation Scheme.
Additional keywords: age–length key, sampling methods.
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