Discrepancy between otolith and tag-recovery estimates of growth for two South African surf-zone teleost species

Growth rates determined from recovered tagged galjoen Dichistius capensis a nd white steenbras Lithognathus lithognathus were compared to predictions f rom growth models based on otolith ring counts. Galjoen could not be sexed externally, but it was assumed that all fish > 450 mm total length were fem ales, which grow Caster than males. Those smaller than this were assumed to include mostly males and were treated as a "male" sample. Male and female white steenbras grow equivalently. Tagged "male" (n = 322), and female galj oen (n = 34) and white steenbras (n = 14) grew more slowly than the model p redictions. The discrepancy is likely attributable to the physiological eff ect of external tags on growth.