1
Indian J. Fish., 68(2): 1-7, 2021
DOI: 10.21077/ijf.2021.68.2.100525-01
Growth and mortality of Serranus cabrilla (Linnaeus, 1758) (Actinopterygii:
Perciformes: Serranidae) from Bou Ismail Bay, off Algeria, south-western
Mediterranean
FADHILA AILANE, ABDERRAHMANE KASSAR AND FARID HEMIDA
Department of Living Resources, National School of Marine Sciences and Coastal Planning - ENSSMAL B. P. 19
16047, Dely Ibrahim, Algiers, Algeria
e-mail: ailane.fadhila35@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to determine the growth and mortality parameters of the comber Serranus cabrilla (Linnaeus, 1758)
in the central region of the Algerian coast. A total of 1568 specimens were collected from January 2016 to April 2018. Total
length (TL) varied between 9.3 and 26.2 cm. The maximum total length recorded in the Mediterranean Sea for the species
is 26.2 cm (TL max ). The von Bertalanffy growth parameters were estimated using ELEFAN I routine in FiSAT II program
(L ∞ = 32.80 cm; K = 0.41 yr
-1
; t 0 = - 0.39 yr
-1
) and those related to the length-weight relationship are as follows:
W ∞ = 372.15 g; a = 0.012 and b = 2.96 (r
2
= 0.93). Total mortality (Z) and natural mortality (M) coefficients stood at 2.63 yr
-1
and 0.43 yr
-1
, respectively. The calculated exploitation rate, E = 0.84, indicated that S. cabrilla population is overexploited.
Keywords: Bony fish, Comber, Population dynamics, Serranids, Serranus cabrilla
Introduction
The comber Serranus cabrilla (Linnaeus, 1758),
is a teleost fish of commercial interest, common in the
Mediterranean, Western Black Sea and Atlantic Ocean,
from the British Isles to the Cape of Good Hope, including
the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands (Fisher et al.,
1987). This species frequents rocky and sandy bottoms
and areas with the seagrass Posidonia oceanica. It is found
between 0 and 450 m depth (Carpenter and De Angelis,
2016), but usually only down to 90 m (Fisher et al., 1987).
Most published data are limited to the Atlantic Ocean and
the eastern Mediterranean viz., the Canary Islands (Tuset
et al., 1996), the Portuguese coasts (Gordo et al., 2016), the
southern coasts of Tunisia (Bouain, 1981; Bouain, 1983)
and the Turkish coasts (Politou and Papaconstantinou,
1995; Tserpes and Tsimenides, 2001; Turker-Cakir and
Torcu-Koc , 2002; Torcu-Koc et al., 2004; Ilhan et al., 2010).
Landings of the comber along the Algerian coast are
important since the fifties (Dieuzeide et al., 1959) to the
current period. Studies on diet (Rachedi et al., 2018) and
growth (Rachedi and Dahel, 2019) have been carried out in
the Gulf of Annaba from the eastern Algerian coast, but no
studies are available from the central region. The species is
heavily exploited by trammel nets and bottom trawl in the
Bou Ismail Bay. However, the status of its stock remains
unknown. Knowledge of growth and mortality parameters
are needed for fitting population dynamics models and for
demographic analyses (Khan and Khan, 2014).
The current study provides the first information on
some biological parameters of S. cabrilla from the Algerian
coast of Bou Ismail Bay in the south-west Mediterranean.
Materials and methods
Study area and sampling
From January 2016 to April 2018, 1568 specimens
of S. cabrilla were sampled from catches realised off
the Bou Ismail Bay. This bay is located in the central
part of the Algerian coast, between 36.63°N, 2.40°E
and 36.80°N, 2.89°E. It is bounded by the cape of
Mount Chenoua from the west and Ras-Acrata from
the east (Fig. 1).
For each collected specimen, the total length (TL,
in cm) and total weight (TW, in g) were measured to
the nearest cm and 0.01 g precision, respectively.
S. cabrilla is a simultaneous hermaphrodite species
(García-Díaz et al., 1997), which does not allow sex to
be determined.
Data analysis
The von Bertalanffy growth parameters were
estimated as follows (von Bertalanffy, 1938):
TL= L ∞ × (1-e
-K
(t - t 0 ) )
Indian J. Fish., 68(2): 1-7, 2021
DOI: 10.21077/ijf.2021.68.2.100525-01
Growth and mortality of Serranus cabrilla (Linnaeus, 1758) (Actinopterygii:
Perciformes: Serranidae) from Bou Ismail Bay, off Algeria, south-western
Mediterranean
FADHILA AILANE, ABDERRAHMANE KASSAR AND FARID HEMIDA
Department of Living Resources, National School of Marine Sciences and Coastal Planning - ENSSMAL B. P. 19
16047, Dely Ibrahim, Algiers, Algeria
e-mail: ailane.fadhila35@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to determine the growth and mortality parameters of the comber Serranus cabrilla (Linnaeus, 1758)
in the central region of the Algerian coast. A total of 1568 specimens were collected from January 2016 to April 2018. Total
length (TL) varied between 9.3 and 26.2 cm. The maximum total length recorded in the Mediterranean Sea for the species
is 26.2 cm (TL max ). The von Bertalanffy growth parameters were estimated using ELEFAN I routine in FiSAT II program
(L ∞ = 32.80 cm; K = 0.41 yr
-1
; t 0 = - 0.39 yr
-1
) and those related to the length-weight relationship are as follows:
W ∞ = 372.15 g; a = 0.012 and b = 2.96 (r
2
= 0.93). Total mortality (Z) and natural mortality (M) coefficients stood at 2.63 yr
-1
and 0.43 yr
-1
, respectively. The calculated exploitation rate, E = 0.84, indicated that S. cabrilla population is overexploited.
Keywords: Bony fish, Comber, Population dynamics, Serranids, Serranus cabrilla
Introduction
The comber Serranus cabrilla (Linnaeus, 1758),
is a teleost fish of commercial interest, common in the
Mediterranean, Western Black Sea and Atlantic Ocean,
from the British Isles to the Cape of Good Hope, including
the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands (Fisher et al.,
1987). This species frequents rocky and sandy bottoms
and areas with the seagrass Posidonia oceanica. It is found
between 0 and 450 m depth (Carpenter and De Angelis,
2016), but usually only down to 90 m (Fisher et al., 1987).
Most published data are limited to the Atlantic Ocean and
the eastern Mediterranean viz., the Canary Islands (Tuset
et al., 1996), the Portuguese coasts (Gordo et al., 2016), the
southern coasts of Tunisia (Bouain, 1981; Bouain, 1983)
and the Turkish coasts (Politou and Papaconstantinou,
1995; Tserpes and Tsimenides, 2001; Turker-Cakir and
Torcu-Koc , 2002; Torcu-Koc et al., 2004; Ilhan et al., 2010).
Landings of the comber along the Algerian coast are
important since the fifties (Dieuzeide et al., 1959) to the
current period. Studies on diet (Rachedi et al., 2018) and
growth (Rachedi and Dahel, 2019) have been carried out in
the Gulf of Annaba from the eastern Algerian coast, but no
studies are available from the central region. The species is
heavily exploited by trammel nets and bottom trawl in the
Bou Ismail Bay. However, the status of its stock remains
unknown. Knowledge of growth and mortality parameters
are needed for fitting population dynamics models and for
demographic analyses (Khan and Khan, 2014).
The current study provides the first information on
some biological parameters of S. cabrilla from the Algerian
coast of Bou Ismail Bay in the south-west Mediterranean.
Materials and methods
Study area and sampling
From January 2016 to April 2018, 1568 specimens
of S. cabrilla were sampled from catches realised off
the Bou Ismail Bay. This bay is located in the central
part of the Algerian coast, between 36.63°N, 2.40°E
and 36.80°N, 2.89°E. It is bounded by the cape of
Mount Chenoua from the west and Ras-Acrata from
the east (Fig. 1).
For each collected specimen, the total length (TL,
in cm) and total weight (TW, in g) were measured to
the nearest cm and 0.01 g precision, respectively.
S. cabrilla is a simultaneous hermaphrodite species
(García-Díaz et al., 1997), which does not allow sex to
be determined.
Data analysis
The von Bertalanffy growth parameters were
estimated as follows (von Bertalanffy, 1938):
TL= L ∞ × (1-e
-K
(t - t 0 ) )