Growth performance of four wrasse species on the north-western Mediterranean coast

Age and growth patterns of four common species of wrasses, Labrus merula, C oris julis, Symphodus roissali and Symphodus tinca, from the north-western Mediterranean sea are analysed. Length-at-age values are estimated from oto liths from which the first annual hyaline ring is determined by reading dai ly rings. The growth patterns are well described by the von Bertalanffy gro wth equation with the exception of S. tinca which showed an extremely high dispersion in the length-at-age distribution. The daily rings show the seco nd hyaline ring as the first annual hyaline ring, whereas the first hyaline ring was formed after 2 months of life coinciding with the settlement peri od of these species, which indicates that changes in otolith crystal growth during the first year of life could be driven by biological or physiologic al changes in the individuals. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights re served.