In this issue

A Study on Postharvest Losses in Fisheries Owing to Changes in Market Supply and Demand in the Philippines
Age, Growth, and Population Structure of Conomurex luhunuas
MPA-FishMApp – A Citizen Science App That Simplifies Monitoring of Coral Reef Fish Density and Biomass in Marine Protected Areas
Updates on Identification and Distribution of the River Mullet “Ludong” in Northern Philippines
Correlation of Chlorophyll-a and Dissolved Oxygen in the Phytoplankton Abundance in Leyte Gulf, Philippines
Status of Sea Cucumber Fisheries in Mindanao: Harnessing Local Knowledge in Determining Diversity and Production Values
Identification and Morphology of the Two Horseshoe Crab Species, Tachypleus tridentatus (Leah, 1819) and Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda (Latreille, 1802) (Merostomata: Limulidae) from Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines
First Report on the Reproductive Biology of the Redtail Scad Decapterus kurroides Bleeker, 1855 in Iligan Bay, Southern Philippines
Harmful Jellyfishes are Manageable
Deployment of Artificial Habitats Alone Cannot Make up for the Degradation of Coral Reefs

Journal Issue Volume 29 Issue 2 Age, Growth, and Population Structure of...

Research Article

Age, Growth, and Population Structure of Conomurex luhunuas

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Katherine P. Sanchez-Escalona1 ,

The Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City

Corresponding author

nyctarinia@gmail.com

and Porfirio A. Aliño2

1Mindoro State College of Agriculture and Technology, Victoria, 5205 Oriental Mindoro
2The Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City

Page 115-123 | Received 30 Mar 2021, Accepted 24 June 2022

Abstract

Age and growth dynamics of Conomurex luhuanus were investigated to determine the population structure. Age-specific change in shell shape determined with geometric morphometrics revealed discrimination of shape between 0-3 years old at 99–100% while 3–4 years old can be separated with 81% certainty. Using the age discrimination data, K and L∞ were estimated at 1.00 year-1 and 7.28 cm, respectively. Recruitment is bimodal with natural mortality (M) of 0.71 and fishing mortality (F) approximated at 3.92 year-1. The exploitation rate (E) is 0.85 year-1, indicating probable overharvesting of the population under study. The presence of a deep-water population, age-specific burying behavior, and bimodal recruitment pattern are possible resilience factors.


Keywords: population dynamics, overexploitation, FiSAT, aging, artisanal fishing