Morphometric Relationships between Length and Weight of 109 Fish Species in the Caribbean Sea (French West Indies).

GUADELOUPE; MARTINIQUE; WEST Indies

Simple Summary: Poor quality of biological information, such as the relationship between length and weight parameters, could be a source of variability with a significant impact on stock assessment results. This relationship between the length and weight of individuals could differ between males and females as well as two separated islands and/or linked to the reproduction period according the studied species. In total, 109 fish species (24,996 individuals) were sampled around Guadeloupe and Martinique Islands from October 2021 to September 2022 to estimate the morphometric relationships between total length and weight (Length Weight Relationship: LWR) of each fish species according to potential spatial, temporal and sex differences. Of these species, this is the first time that the LWR was estimated in the Atlantic Ocean for 16 species. There is a significant relationship between length and weight for all tested species. For 83 tested species, the sex effect on the LWR showed significant sexual dimorphism for 24 species. Additionally, a link between the temporal effect and the reproduction period was tested for 68 species, of which 35 presented significant differences relative to the annual quarter of sampling. Finally, the geographical effect (i.e., the difference between samples from around Guadeloupe Island and those from Martinique Island) was significant for 60 species. This island effect was significant for 25 species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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