Life History Aspects of the Gray Tilefish, Caulolatilus Microps (Goode and Bean, 1878)
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W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1978 Life history aspects of the gray tilefish, Caulolatilus microps (Goode and Bean, 1878) Jeffrey L. Ross College of William and Mary - Virginia Institute of Marine Science Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the Fresh Water Studies Commons, Marine Biology Commons, Oceanography Commons, and the Zoology Commons Recommended Citation Ross, Jeffrey L., "Life history aspects of the gray tilefish, Caulolatilus microps (Goode and Bean, 1878)" (1978). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539617482. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.25773/v5-0s0k-ds97 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LIFE HISTORY ASPECTS OF THE GRAY TILEFISH, CAULOLATILUS MICROPS (Goode and Bean, 1878) A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the School of Marine Science The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Jeffrey L. Ross 1978 ProQuest Number: 10626196 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10626196 Published by ProQuest LLC (2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106 - 1346 APPROVAL SHEET This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Jeffrey L. Ross tved, December 1978 V\> > *_____ John, erriner, Ph Co-q Irman Gene R. Huntsman, Ph.D Co-chairman 'V hn Al Musick, Ph.D. /Josepn G. Lodsch, Ph.D. «/ I /. - .... ";V Craig L. Smi/h, Ph.D. 1.1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.................................................................................................................................................iv LIST OF TABLES......................................................................................................................................................vi LIST OF FIGURES..............................................................................................................................................vii ABSTRACT................................................................................................................................................................. x GENERAL INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................. 2 SECTION I: REPRODUCTIVEBIOLOGY ............................................................................................... 8 INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................ 9 METHODS AND MATERIALS.................................................................................................11 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION..................................................................................................15 SUMMARY...........................................................................................................................................51 SECTION II: AGE, GROWTH AND MORTALITY..................................................................................54 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................55 METHODS AND MATERIALS..................................................................................................56 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION..................................................................................................59 SUMMARY...........................................................................................................................................92 SECTION III: FOOD HABITS....................................................................................................................95 INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................................96 METHODS AND MATERIALS...................................................................................................97 RESULTS...........................................................................................................................................99 DISCUSSION..................................................................................................................................109 LITERATURE CITED..............................................................................................................................................112 VITA................................................................................................................................................................................120 i i i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Dr. John Merriner for suggesting this research topic and for his patience in reviewing several manuscripts. My sincere appreciation to Dr. Gene Huntsman, NMFS, Beaufort, N.C., for making available to me the data base, biological samples, vessel time and any materials needed for this research, for his helpful suggestions, and for reviewing the manuscripts. I also thank Drs. Joe Loesch, John Musick, and Craig Smith for reviewing the manuscript and offering useful criticisms. I express appreciation to the following personnel from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science: Patricia Berry for sectioning and staining gonads; Ken Thornberry and Bill Jenkins for photography; Frank Wojick for computer assistance; Gary Gaston, Elizabeth Lewis Wenner, and Don Weston for aiding in the identification of invertebrates; June Hoagman for drafting; and Julia Millan and Linda Jenkins for typing the first and final drafts, respectively. My sincere thanks to the entire National Marine Fisheries Service staff, Beaufort, N.C., particularly Jim Sykes, for allowing me access to their facilities, and also to: Herb Gordy for art work; Dave Colby and John Hollingsworth for computer assistance; and Dr. Charles Manooch, Dr. Churchill Grimes, Robert Dixon, Rob Mathison, Peter Parker and Captain Doug Willis for their assistance with field collections and enlightening discussions. For the use of their museum specimens, I am particularly indebted to Dr. Robert K. Johnson, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, 111. and Dr. Frank Schwartz, University of North Carolina, Morehead City, N.C. I also express appreciation to Dr. Frank Perkins, VIMS, and Dr. Tom Scott, William and Mary, for the use of their photomicroscopic equipment. This thesis is dedicated to Craig Smith; his strength and patience is much more than an inspiration. v LIST OF TABLES T a b le P age 1 Frequency of male and female Caulolatilus microps from North and South Carolina within 25 and 100 mm total length intervals with chi- square values assuming a 1:1 sex ra ti o ...................................................... 29 2 Mean back-calculated total lengths of 97 female Caulolatilus microps .......................................................................................................... 66 3 Mean back-calculated total lengths of 83 male Caulolatilus microps .......................................................................................................... 67 4 Mean back-calculated total lengths of 201 Caulolatilus microps(sexes combined) ................................................................. 68 5 Comparison of mean empirical lengths/age, mean back-calculated lengths/age and theoretical lengths/age for female and male Caulolatilus microps.......................................................................................................................................... 77 Analysis of covariance for North Carolina female and male Caulolatilus microps weight-length relationships ......................................................................................................................... 80 Analysis of covariance for North and South Carolina Caulolatilus microps weight-length relationships (sexes combined) ................................................................... 82 Total annual mortality estimates for Caulolatilus microps ..................................................................................................... 91 List of organisms found in the digestive tracts of Caulolatilus microps ........................ 100 10 Relative frequency of occurrence, volume and dominance of organisms found in the intestines and stomachs of Caulolatilus microps .............................102 11 Relative frequency of occurrence and dominance of organisms found in the digestive tracts of Caulolatilus microps, partitioned by 100 mm TL classes (400 to 800 mm TL) ......................................................................................106 v i LIST OF FIGURES Distribution of