GROWTH OF DEMERSAL FISH SPECIES OF THE MEXICAN PACIFIC-OCEAN

The growth of 24 species of demersal fish caught off the Sinaloa-Nayar it coast and in the Gulf of Tehuantepec (Mexican Pacific Ocean) was de termined by means of length-frequency analysis. Fishes constitute an i mportant bycatch of the penaeid shrimp fishery, and 235 species were i dentified in catches made on research cruises in both areas in 1989 to 1992. Growth rates (cm yr(-1)) ranged from 0.13 cm for lutjanids and serranids to 0.95 cm for the carangid Selene peruviana; the other spec ies displayed growth rates within this range. Growth varied seasonally , with minimum growth in spring, and is probably related to seasonal c hanges in the waters of the area. By means of length-frequency analysi s, we determined von Bertalanffy growth parameters for the primary spe cies of this multispecies fishery. Such data is fundamental for the fu ture commercial exploitation of these fishes.