Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO)
Wahoo <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> is a common bycatch pelagic species in oceanic fisheries targeting tuna and tuna-like species. Biology and environmental preferences are important parameters in understanding life history of fish species including wahoo. Despite the socio-economic impo...
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doaj-423a7d28e9634155bcbf44222ab5b25f2021-04-02T09:51:58ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122020-03-018318410.3390/jmse8030184jmse8030184Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO)Chunxia Gao0Siquan Tian1Richard Kindong2Xiaojie Dai3College of Marine Sciences of Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, ChinaCollege of Marine Sciences of Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, ChinaCollege of Marine Sciences of Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, ChinaCollege of Marine Sciences of Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, ChinaWahoo <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> is a common bycatch pelagic species in oceanic fisheries targeting tuna and tuna-like species. Biology and environmental preferences are important parameters in understanding life history of fish species including wahoo. Despite the socio-economic importance of wahoo in many coastal countries, little is known about their biological and fisheries information in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO). These parameters were analyzed on the basis of samples collected via the Chinese tuna long-line Fishery Observer Programme in 2012. Results obtained from this study show that the fork length (FL) of wahoo ranged from 59 to 169 cm with an average of 111.3 cm, and two dominant size groups were identified at 100 to 130 cm for males and 90 to 130 cm for females. Body size did not significantly differ between female and male wahoo specimens. Wahoo specimens expressed a positive allometric growth (<i>b</i> = 3.183), and the sex ratio was 1.9:1 (female/male), which differed significantly between both sexes. Only female wahoo were observed in catches of FL > 150 cm. The estimated lengths at 50% maturity (FL<sub>50</sub>) of female and male wahoo were 84 cm and 83 cm, respectively. Gonadosomatic index (GSI) of wahoo was at its peak in November, and on the basis of the stomach content analysis, wahoo mainly preyed on fish (84.64%), cephalopods (14.26%), and crustaceans (1.1%), found on the basis of prey number. The optimal swimming depth and water temperature of wahoo in the WCPO were found to range between 70 and 110 m and 23.1 and 24 ℃, respectively. The updated life history information presented in this work helps to address current data limitations and provides critical information for future assessments of wahoo stocks in the WCPO.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/8/3/184bycatch speciesstomach contentgsilength-at-maturitywcpo |
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DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Chunxia Gao Siquan Tian Richard Kindong Xiaojie Dai |
spellingShingle |
Chunxia Gao Siquan Tian Richard Kindong Xiaojie Dai Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) Journal of Marine Science and Engineering bycatch species stomach content gsi length-at-maturity wcpo |
author_facet |
Chunxia Gao Siquan Tian Richard Kindong Xiaojie Dai |
author_sort |
Chunxia Gao |
title |
Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) |
title_short |
Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) |
title_full |
Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) |
title_fullStr |
Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) |
title_full_unstemmed |
Biology and Environmental Preferences of Wahoo, <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> (Cuvier, 1832), in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) |
title_sort |
biology and environmental preferences of wahoo, <i>acanthocybium solandri</i> (cuvier, 1832), in the western and central pacific ocean (wcpo) |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
issn |
2077-1312 |
publishDate |
2020-03-01 |
description |
Wahoo <i>Acanthocybium solandri</i> is a common bycatch pelagic species in oceanic fisheries targeting tuna and tuna-like species. Biology and environmental preferences are important parameters in understanding life history of fish species including wahoo. Despite the socio-economic importance of wahoo in many coastal countries, little is known about their biological and fisheries information in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO). These parameters were analyzed on the basis of samples collected via the Chinese tuna long-line Fishery Observer Programme in 2012. Results obtained from this study show that the fork length (FL) of wahoo ranged from 59 to 169 cm with an average of 111.3 cm, and two dominant size groups were identified at 100 to 130 cm for males and 90 to 130 cm for females. Body size did not significantly differ between female and male wahoo specimens. Wahoo specimens expressed a positive allometric growth (<i>b</i> = 3.183), and the sex ratio was 1.9:1 (female/male), which differed significantly between both sexes. Only female wahoo were observed in catches of FL > 150 cm. The estimated lengths at 50% maturity (FL<sub>50</sub>) of female and male wahoo were 84 cm and 83 cm, respectively. Gonadosomatic index (GSI) of wahoo was at its peak in November, and on the basis of the stomach content analysis, wahoo mainly preyed on fish (84.64%), cephalopods (14.26%), and crustaceans (1.1%), found on the basis of prey number. The optimal swimming depth and water temperature of wahoo in the WCPO were found to range between 70 and 110 m and 23.1 and 24 ℃, respectively. The updated life history information presented in this work helps to address current data limitations and provides critical information for future assessments of wahoo stocks in the WCPO. |
topic |
bycatch species stomach content gsi length-at-maturity wcpo |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/8/3/184 |
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