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Advances in the aquatic sciences
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Age and growth of the threatened endemic skate Rioraja agassizii (Chondrichthyes, Arhynchobatidae) in the western South Atlantic

F. P. Caltabellotta A E , F. M. Silva B , F. S. Motta C and O. B. F. Gadig D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Florida Program for Shark Research, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, 1659 Museum Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.

B Laboratório de Ecologia de Paisagem Costeira, Instituto de Oceanografia, Fundação Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Avenida Itália quilômetro 8, Rio Grande, RS, CEP 96201–900, Brazil.

C Laboratório de Ecologia e Conservação Marinha, Instituto do Mar, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Dr Carvalho de Mendonça, 144, Encruzilhada, Santos, SP, CEP 11070-100, Brazil.

D Laboratório de Pesquisa de Elasmobrânquios, Universidade Estadual Paulista ‘Júlio de Mesquita Filho’, Campus do Litoral Paulista, Praça Infante Dom Henrique, s/n, Parque Bitarú, São Vicente, SP, CEP 11380-972, Brazil.

E Corresponding author. Email: fcaltabellotta@ufl.edu

Marine and Freshwater Research 70(1) 84-92 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF18010
Submitted: 12 January 2018  Accepted: 5 June 2018   Published: 28 August 2018

Abstract

The Rio skate Rioraja agassizii is a threatened endemic skate species frequently caught as bycatch in the western South Atlantic. However, there is no biological information about its age and growth parameters, which would be necessary to provide science-based information for the development of management strategies for this species. The aim of the present study was to provide information about the age and growth parameters of R. agassizii. In all, 138 vertebrae from individuals ranging in size from 9.0 to 53.2-cm total length (TL) were analysed. The edge analysis indicated a trend for annual band deposition in the vertebrae. Maximum ages estimated for males and females were 6 and 10 years respectively. Akaike’s information criterion indicated that the modified two-parameter form of the von Bertalanffy growth function (using length at birth L0 = 9.0 cm TL) provided the best fit, with derived parameters of theoretical maximum length L = 49.6 cm TL and growth coefficient k = 0.27 for males and L = 59.0 cm TL and k = 0.22 for females. Our results are important to understanding the resilience of this skate species to harvest, which can contribute to the development of fisheries management strategies and conservation programs.

Additional keywords: fisheries management, population dynamics, Rajiformes.


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