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Marine and Freshwater Research Marine and Freshwater Research Society
Advances in the aquatic sciences
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Growth rates of juvenile southern rock lobster (Jasus edwardsii) estimated through a diver‐based tag–recapture program

Adrian Linnane A D , David Hobday B , Stewart Frusher C and Caleb Gardner C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A South Australian Research and Development Institute (Aquatic Sciences), PO Box 120, Henley Beach, SA 5022, Australia.

B Fisheries Research Branch, Department of Primary Industries, PO Box 114, Queenscliff, Vic. 3225, Australia.

C University of Tasmania, Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies, Private Bag 49, Hobart, Tas. 7001, Australia.

D Corresponding author. Email: Adrian.Linnane@sa.gov.au

Marine and Freshwater Research 63(2) 110-118 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF11121
Submitted: 3 June 2011  Accepted: 8 October 2011   Published: 28 November 2011

Abstract

Despite being one of the most economically important fisheries in south-eastern Australia, growth rates of juvenile southern rock lobster (Jasus edwardsii) have not previously been quantified in the wild. This study utilised a diver-based tag–recapture program to estimate growth rates of individuals between 40–80 mm carapace length (CL) in temperate reef sites across south-eastern Australia. Of the 7064 lobsters tagged and released, 978 (14%) were recaptured with recapture rates of 23, 5 and 7% in the States of Tasmania, South Australia and Victoria respectively. Although individual growth increments were similar between the sexes, differences in annual growth rates were evident at 50 mm CL, with males growing ~1.4 times faster than females. Increased levels of growth in males resulted from a higher moult frequency, which was found to significantly reduce in females as they reached sexual maturity at ~70–80 mm CL. No significant difference was found in growth rates of males or females between the States when all sites within each State were combined. The growth estimates from this work contribute to the understanding of juvenile lobster population dynamics and will improve current fishery models by confirming relationships between early juvenile, pre-recruit abundance and entry to the fishable biomass.


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