Age, growth, sex-ratio, spawning season and food of golden banded goatfish, Upeneus moluccensis Bleeker (1855) from the Mediterranean and south Aegean Sea coasts of Turkey

The length, growth, age composition, spawning season, sex ratio, and food o f golden banded goatfish (Upeneus moluccensis) were studied on the basis of 711 specimens from the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Females made up 75.25% a nd males 24.75% of the species, The fork length of females ranged from 8.6 to 17.8 cm, and of males, from 8.5 to 16.1 cm. The length-weight relationships estimated for males and females were: W = 0 .01051 L-3.15006 and W = 0.00607 L-3.35215, respectively. Mean fork length at age data derived from otolith readings were used to est imate the growth parameters of the von Bertalanffy equation. The estimated parameters were: L-infinity = 26.20 cm, K = 0.11, t(o) = -4.08 for females, and L-infinity = 23186 cm, K = 0.12, t(o) = -3.69 for males. The maximum age group determined was VI for females and V for males. Age gr oup III was the dominant one in females and age group II in males. The mont hly values of gonadosomatic index (GSI) of females indicated that the spawn ing occurred mainly in August and September. Golden banded goatfish fed mainly on Crustacea. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B .V. All rights reserved.