Comparison of age and growth parameters of invasive red lionfish (Pterois volitans) across the northern Gulf of Mexico Fishery Bulletin

Invasive red lionfish (Pterois volitans) have spread rapidly throughout the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) partly because of their high growth rate. Red lionfish were collected from the northern GOM across 3 ecological regions from 2012 through 2015. For male and female red lionfish, relationships between weight and total length (TL) were different by ecological region. Males achieved a greater mean weight adjusted for TL (333.6 g [standard error (SE) 3.6]) than females (195.1 g [SE 3.7]). A subsample of 1607 pairs of sagittal otoliths (from 744 males, 716 females, and 147 fish of unknown or undetermined sex) was used to assign ages. Ages ranged from 0.0 to 4.5 years (mean: 1.4 years), and these estimated ages and the dates of capture for specimens confirm the presence of red lionfish in the northern GOM in 2008, 2 years prior to the first detection of this species there. There were differences in age and growth between sexes within and among ecological regions, with males achieving higher growth rates and larger asymptotic lengths than females (all comparisons: P<0.01). These findings, coupled with other life history information, aid in discerning differences in distribution of red lionfish populations and are essential for creating management plans for mitigation of their effects on ecosystems. 2019 Aquatic Science NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) SEFSC (Southeast Fisheries Science Center) Submitted https://doi.org/10.7755/FB.117.3.1 Public Domain 2266

入侵性红狮子鱼（Pterois volitans）已在墨西哥湾北部（Gulf of Mexico, GOM）快速扩散，部分原因在于其较快的生长速率。2012年至2015年间，研究人员从墨西哥湾北部的3个生态区域采集了红狮子鱼样本。针对雌雄红狮子鱼，其体重与总长度（Total Length, TL）的相关性因生态区域的不同而存在差异。经总长度校正后，雄性的平均体重（333.6 g，标准误[Standard Error, SE] 3.6）高于雌性（195.1 g，SE 3.7）。本研究选取1607对矢耳石（sagittal otoliths）作为子样本用于年龄鉴定，这些耳石分别来自744尾雄性个体、716尾雌性个体以及147尾性别未知或未确定的个体。样本的年龄跨度为0.0至4.5年（平均年龄1.4年），结合估算年龄与样本捕获日期，可证实红狮子鱼早在2008年就已存在于墨西哥湾北部，比该物种首次在此区域被发现的时间早了2年。研究还发现，在各生态区域内部及区域之间，雌雄个体的年龄与生长特征均存在显著差异：雄性的生长速率与渐近长度均高于雌性（所有对比分析的P值均<0.01）。上述研究结果结合其他生活史信息，有助于厘清红狮子鱼种群的分布格局差异，同时也是制定管理计划以减缓其对生态系统造成的负面影响所必需的依据。本研究由美国国家海洋渔业局（National Marine Fisheries Service, NMFS）下属的东南渔业科学中心（Southeast Fisheries Science Center, SEFSC）于2019年提交并刊载于《Aquatic Science》，DOI: 10.7755/FB.117.3.1，属于公共领域（Public Domain）资源，文章编号2266。