TOTAL LENGTH ESTIMATION OF RED DRUM FROM HEAD DIMENSIONS

Four head dimensions of red drum Sciaenops ocellatus were individually regressed against total length (TL) to facilitate estimation of the s ize of hatchery-reared fish recaptured by sport anglers. Head length, postorbital head length, snout length, and eye diameter measurements w ere obtained from 58 individuals ranging from 130 to 639 mm TL. Each o f the head dimensions was correlated with TL, and r(2) coefficients ra nged from 0.963 for eye diameter to 0.995 for head length. All of the head dimensions examined appear to be good predictors of red drum TL.