AGE AND GROWTH OF THE BLACK SCABBARD FISH (APHANOPUS-CARBO) OFF MADEIRA

The black scabbard fish (Aphanopus carbo Lowe, 1839) is a bathypelagic fish living off Madeira (Division 2 ZEE Portugal) at 180-1600 m depth ; the highest abundances occur between 800 and 1300 m. Based on sampli ng carried out between 1986 and 1988, the length and sex composition o f the landings, and age and growth of the species were studied. The le ngth range of the sampled fish was 54-151 cm. Females predominated and were generally larger. The annual nature of the growth zones in the o toliths was evaluated by means of marginal increment analysis. Further evaluation was obtained by analysing fish length-frequency distributi ons. Black scabbard fish is a relatively fast-growing species living u p to 8 years. The von Bertalanffy growth curve describing species grow th was TL = 138.6 {1 - exp[-0.251(t + 2.284)]}, where TL is total leng th and 1 age (years). The growth rate falls within the values reported for trichiurids, although growth performance is slower, probably due to its deeper distribution.