Reproduction Traits and Strategies of Two Sardinella Species off the Southwest Coast of Africa
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Area
2.2. Sea Surface Temperature Data
2.3. Sampling Process
2.3.1. Sex Ratio and Sexual Maturity Stages
2.3.2. Length at Maturity
2.3.3. Gonadosomatic Index
2.3.4. Condition Factor
2.3.5. Ichthyoplankton Collection
2.3.6. Statistical Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Sea Surface Temperature Patterns
3.2. Sex Ratio and Size Distribution
3.3. Size at First Sexual Maturity
3.4. Sexual Maturity Stages
3.5. Gonadosomatic Index
3.6. Condition Factor
3.7. Ichthyoplankton Collection
4. Discussion
4.1. Sex Ratio and Size Distribution
4.2. Spawning Period
4.3. Spawning Area
4.4. Condition Factor
4.5. Size at Sexual Maturity
4.6. Fishery Management
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Sardinella aurita | Sardinella maderensis | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | n | TL ± SD (cm) | TW ± SD (g) | n | TL ± SD (cm) | TW ± SD (g) | |
2016 | January | 37 | 29.5 ± 1.9 | 323.6 ± 154.3 | 19 | 31.7 ± 0.9 | 329.8 ± 17.8 |
February | 24 | 31.9 ± 1.7 | 330.5 ± 53.2 | 13 | 32.2 ± 1.3 | 307.6 ± 26.6 | |
March | 33 | 29.6 ± 2.1 | 292.0 ± 143.7 | 26 | 30.2 ± 1.6 | 293.8 ± 193.2 | |
April | 40 | 23.4 ± 3.6 | 170.0 ± 127.4 | 16 | 31.1 ± 1.5 | 301.0 ± 196.3 | |
May | 35 | 22.7 ± 1.3 | 187.1 ± 108.6 | 21 | 32.2 ± 1.3 | 427.1 ± 242.9 | |
June | 24 | 22.9 ± 1.1 | 168.9 ± 102.0 | 33 | 25.2 ± 2.6 | 161.8 ± 73.0 | |
July | |||||||
August | |||||||
September | |||||||
October | 41 | 28.6 ± 2.5 | 405.9 ± 247.5 | 41 | 29.2 ± 1.2 | 369.0 ± 206.0 | |
November | |||||||
December | 28 | 31.0 ± 2.4 | 337.4 ± 145.5 | 23 | 31.6 ± 1.4 | 364.0 ± 163.0 | |
2017 | January | 21 | 28.7 ± 1.1 | 326.7 ± 167.3 | 21 | 31.5 ± 1.2 | 552.5 ± 345.4 |
February | 18 | 32.6 ± 0.8 | 435.7 ± 149.8 | ||||
March | 22 | 29.4 ± 1.3 | 298.2 ± 129.0 | 20 | 31.3 ± 1.9 | 260.1 ± 58.4 | |
April | 42 | 22.9 ± 1.4 | 183.6 ± 108.8 | 16 | 25.0 ± 0.8 | 135.8 ± 11.7 | |
May | 18 | 22.6 ± 1.2 | 125.7 ± 52.7 | 18 | 22.4 ± 0.7 | 129.9 ± 101.1 | |
June | 25 | 19.1 ± 1.1 | 73.3 ± 27.4 | ||||
July | 26 | 21.5 ± 1.5 | 100.3 ± 31.7 | 21 | 23.4 ± 2.2 | 105.8 ± 42.8 | |
August | |||||||
September | 20 | 25.0 ± 0.7 | 193.3 ± 88.0 | ||||
October | 20 | 32.4 ± 1.0 | 475.1 ± 234.4 | ||||
November | 23 | 27.0 ± 1.5 | 202.5 ± 62.6 | 13 | 31.6 ± 0.9 | 350.8 ± 136.1 | |
December | 21 | 31.0 ± 1.0 | 442.0 ± 228.5 | 18 | 31.3 ± 0.7 | 361.6 ± 149.1 |
Stage | State | Description |
---|---|---|
I | Immature | The ovary and testis are about one-third the length of the body cavity. The ovaries are pinkish and translucent. The testes are whitish, and the ova are not visible to the naked eye. |
II | Maturing virgin and recovering spent | The ovary and testis are about half the length of the body cavity. The ovary is pinkish and translucent. The testes are whitish and symmetrical, and the ova are not visible to the naked eye. |
III | Ripening | The ovary and testis are about two-thirds of the length of the body cavity. The ovary is pinkish-yellow with a granular appearance. The testes are whitish to creamy. No transparent or translucent ova are visible. |
IV | Ripe | The ovary and testis occupy two-thirds to the full length of the body cavity. The ovary is orange-pink with conspicuous superficial blood vessels. The ripe ova are large and transparent. The testes are whitish-creamy and soft. |
V | Spent | The ovary and testis have shrunk to about half the length of the body cavity. The cavity walls are loose. The ovary may contain remnants of disintegrating opaque and ripe ova, darkened or translucent. The testes are bloodshot and flabby. |
Station | Eggs | Larvae | Latitude | Longitude |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 15 | 35 | 17° 11′ 34″ S | 11° 35′ 28″ E |
2 | 7 | 5 | 17°11′ 21″ S | 11° 23′ 56″ E |
3 | 4 | 16 | 17° 13′ 78″ S | 11° 21′ 06″ E |
4 | 11 | 2 | 17° 05′ 14″ S | 11° 16′ 23″ E |
5 | 14 | 11 | 17° 06′ 60″ S | 11° 17′ 50″ E |
6 | 1 | 2 | 17° 02′ 46″ S | 11° 22′ 58″ E |
7 | 0 | 11 | 17° 16′ 07″ S | 11° 29′ 42″ E |
9 | 35 | 0 | 17° 01′ 36″ S | 11° 39′ 38″ E |
10 | 28 | 14 | 16° 59′ 79″ S | 11° 40′ 95″ E |
11 | 7 | 3 | 16° 50′ 42″ S | 11° 41′ 06″ E |
12 | 0 | 0 | 16° 49′ 30″ S | 11° 38′ 43″ E |
13 | 17 | 0 | 16° 50′ 10″ S | 11° 03′ 74″ E |
14 | 2 | 0 | 16° 51′ 42″ S | 11° 17′ 51″ E |
15 | 18 | 1 | 16° 36′ 09″ S | 11° 18′ 09″ E |
16 | 12 | 24 | 16° 21′ 96″ S | 11° 43′ 12″ E |
17 | 12 | 11 | 16° 22′ 80″ S | 11° 35′ 28″ E |
18 | 36 | 0 | 16° 23′ 97″ S | 11° 35′ 12″ E |
19 | 9 | 22 | 16° 09′ 80″ S | 11° 45′ 74″ E |
Total | 228 | 157 |
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Quiatuhanga, D.P.A.; Morais, P.; Krug, L.A.; Teodósio, M.A. Reproduction Traits and Strategies of Two Sardinella Species off the Southwest Coast of Africa. Fishes 2025, 10, 261. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10060261
Quiatuhanga DPA, Morais P, Krug LA, Teodósio MA. Reproduction Traits and Strategies of Two Sardinella Species off the Southwest Coast of Africa. Fishes. 2025; 10(6):261. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10060261
Chicago/Turabian StyleQuiatuhanga, Domingas Perpétua André, Pedro Morais, Lilian Anne Krug, and Maria Alexandra Teodósio. 2025. "Reproduction Traits and Strategies of Two Sardinella Species off the Southwest Coast of Africa" Fishes 10, no. 6: 261. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10060261
APA StyleQuiatuhanga, D. P. A., Morais, P., Krug, L. A., & Teodósio, M. A. (2025). Reproduction Traits and Strategies of Two Sardinella Species off the Southwest Coast of Africa. Fishes, 10(6), 261. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10060261