Spatial variation in size at onset of maturity of female southern rock lobster <i>Jasus edwardsii</i> around Tasmania, Australia

Caleb Gardner; Stewart Frusher; Neville Barrett; Malcolm Haddon; Colin Buxton

doi:10.3989/scimar.2006.70n3423

Authors

Caleb Gardner Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania
Stewart Frusher Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania
Neville Barrett Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania
Malcolm Haddon Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania
Colin Buxton Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute, University of Tasmania

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3989/scimar.2006.70n3423

Keywords:

Jasus edwardsii, maturity, rock lobster, reproduction, spatial management

Abstract

P align=justify>The size at onset of maturity (SOM) of female Jasus edwardsii (Hutton, 1875) was estimated at 50 sites around Tasmania, Australia, based on the presence of ovigerous setae. There was a distinct spatial cline with the largest SOM being found at northwestern sites and the smallest at southwestern sites. Variation in SOM between sites was substantial and ranged from 59 mm to 112 mm carapace length. The observed decline in SOM from north to south was the reverse of that described for the same species at similar latitudes in New Zealand, which suggests that SOM in J. edwardsii is regulated by factors in addition to temperature. The effect of density on female SOM was investigated by comparing SOM estimates from two marine reserves with adjacent fished sites; however, there was no evidence of a decline in SOM with increasing density as predicted. A model of SOM predicted by latitude and longitude is described to facilitate spatial modelling of lobster stocks. The substantial and predictable spatial variation in SOM implies that management of this fishery would be improved by incorporating spatial elements, such as regional legal minimum size limits.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Annala, J.H., J.L. McKoy, J.D. Booth and R.B. Pike. – 1980. Size at the onset of sexual maturity in female Jasus edwardsii (Decapoda: Palinuridae) in New Zealand. N.Z. J. Mar. Freshw. Res., 14: 217-227.

Beyers, C.J. and P.C. Goosen. – 1987. Variation in fecundity and sexual maturity of female rock lobster Jasus lalandii in the Beguela ecosystem. S. Afr. J. mar. Sci., 5: 513-521.

Booth, J.D., R.J. Street and P.J. Smith. – 1990. Systematic status of the rock lobster Jasus edwardsii from New Zealand and J. novaehollandiae from Australia. N.Z. J. Mar. Freshw. Res., 24: 239-249.

Breen, P.A. – 1994. Population dynamics and stock assessment of lobsters: a review. Crustaceana, 67: 239-255. doi:10.1163/156854094X00602

Buxton, C.D., N. Barrett, M. Haddon, C. Gardner and G. Edgar. – 2004. Evaluating the effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas as a fisheries management tool. Fisheries Research Development Corporation Final Report 1999/162. 384pp.

Chiswell, S.M. and Booth, J.D. – 2005. Distribution of mid- and late-stage Jasus edwardsii phyllosomas: implications for larval recruitment processes. N.Z. J. Mar. Freshw. Res., 39, 1157-1170.

Cresswell, G. – 2000. Currents of the continental shelf and upper slope of Tasmania. Pap. Proc. R. Soc. Tas., 133: 21-30.

Cresswell G.R., C. Ellyett, R. Legeckis and A.F. Pearce. – 1983. Nearshore features of the East Australian Current system. Aust. J. Mar. Freshw. Res., 34: 105-114. doi:10.1071/MF9830105

Davis, G.E. and J.W. Dodrill. – 1989. Recreational fishery and population dynamics of spiny lobsters, Panulirus argus, in Florida Bay, Everglades National Park, 1977-1980. Bull. Mar. Sci., 44: 78-88.

Edgar, G.J. and N.S. Barrett. – 1999. Effects of the declaration of marine reserves on Tasmanian reef fishes, invertebrates and plants. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., 242: 107-144. doi:10.1016/S0022-0981(99)00098-2

Edgar, G.J., N.S. Barrett and P.R. Last. – 1999. The distribution of macroinvertebrates and fishes in Tasmanian estuaries. J. Biogeogr., 26: 1169-1189. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2699.1999.00365.x

Gardner, C., S. Frusher and S. Ibbott. – 2000. Preliminary modelling of the effect of marine reserves on the catch, egg production, and biomass of rock lobsters in Tasmania. Tasmanian Aquac. Fish. Inst. Tech. Rep. No. 12, 36 pp.

Gardner, C., A. Hirst and M. Haddon. – 2005a. Tasmanian Rock Lobster Fishery 2003/2004. Tasmanian Aquac. Fish. Inst. Assess. Rep., 78 pp.

Gardner, C., D. Mills and S.D. Frusher. – 2005b. Does pleopod setation provide a measure of maturity in female southern rock lobsters Jasus edwardsii? Sci. Mar., 69: 123-131.

Haddon, M. – 2001. Modelling and Quantitative Methods in Fisheries. Chapman and Hall, London.

Hobday, D.K. and T.J. Ryan. – 1997. Contrasting sizes at sexual maturity of southern rock lobsters (Jasus edwardsii) in the two Victorian fishing zones: implications for total egg production and management. Mar. Freshw. Res., 48: 1009-1014. doi:10.1071/MF97143

Hobday, D., A.E. Punt and D.C. Smith. – 2005. Modelling the effects of marine protected areas (MPAs) on the southern rock lobster (Jasus edwardsii) fishery of Victoria, Australia. N.Z. J. Mar. Freshw. Res., 39: 675-686.

Kerr, G. – 1997. Of Men Boats and Crayfish: An Oral History of the Norling Family. Portland, Victoria: Mains’l Books.

MacDiarmid, A.B. – 1989. Size at onset of maturity and sizedependent reproductive output of female and male spiny lobsters Jasus edwardsii (Hutton) (Decapoda, Palinuridae) in northern New Zealand. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol., 127: 229-243. doi:10.1016/0022-0981(89)90076-2

McGarvey, R., G.J. Ferguson and J.H. Prescott. – 1999. Spatial variation in mean growth rates at size of southern rock lobster, Jasus edwardsii, in South Australian waters. Mar. Freshwat. Res., 50: 333-342. doi:10.1071/MF97172

Neter, J., M.H. Kutner, C.J. Nachtsheim and W. Wasserman. – 1990. Applied Linear Statistical Models. 4th Ed. Irwin, Chicago.

Ovendon, J.R., D.J. Brasher and R.W.G. White. – 1992. Mitochondrial DNA analyses of the red rock lobster Jasus edwardsii supports an apparent absence of population subdivision throughout Australasia. Mar. Biol., 112: 319-326. doi:10.1007/BF00702478

Pollock, D.E. – 1991. Spiny lobster at Tristan da Cunha, South Africa: inter island variation in growth and population structure. S. Afr. J. mar. Sci., 10: 1-12.

Pollock, D.E. and P.C. Goosen. – 1991. Reproductive dynamics of the two Jasus species in the south Atlantic region. S. Afr. J. mar. Sci., 10: 141-147.

Pollock, D.E. and L.V. Shannon. – 1987. Response of rock lobster populations in the Benguela ecosystem to environmental change – a hypothesis. S. Afr. J. mar. Sci., 5: 887-899.

Punt, A.E. and R.B. Kennedy. – 1997. Population modelling of Tasmanian rock lobster Jasus edwardsii, resources. Mar. Freshw. Res., 48: 967-980. doi:10.1071/MF97070

Punt, A.E., R.B. Kennedy and S.D. Frusher. – 1997. Estimating the size transition matrix for Tasmanian rock lobster, Jasus edwardsii. Mar. Freshw. Res., 48: 981-992. doi:10.1071/MF97017

Sanchez Lizaso, J.L., R. Goni, O. Renones, J.A.Garcia Charton, R.Galzin, J.T. Bayle, P. Sanchez Jerez, A. Perez Ruzafa and A.A. Ramos. – 2000. Density dependence in marine protected populations: a review. Environ. Conserv., 27: 144-158. doi:10.1017/S0376892900000187

Saville-Kent, W. – 1884. Report to his Excellency Sir George Cumine Strahan, Governor over the Colony of Tasmania on the fisheries of the Colony. 38 pp.

Smith, G.G. – 2004. Maternal and nutritional factors affecting larval competency in the spiny lobster, Jasus edwardsii. PhD thesis, Univ. Tasmania.

Thomas, C.W., C.G. Carter and B.J. Crear. – 2003. Feed availability and its relationship to survival, growth, dominance and the agonistic behaviour of the southern rock lobster, Jasus edwardsii, in captivity. Aquaculture, 215: 45-65. doi:10.1016/S0044-8486(01)00899-7

Tuck, I.D., R.J. Atkinson and C.J. Chapman. – 2000. Population biology of the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus (L.) in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland. II. Fecundity and size at onset of sexual maturity. ICES J. Mar. Sci., 57: 1227-1239. doi:10.1006/jmsc.2000.0809

Turner, K., C. Gardner and R. Swain. – 2002. Onset of maturity in male southern rock lobsters Jasus edwardsii in Tasmania, Australia. Invert. Reprod. Dev., 42: 129-135.

Ziegler, P.E., C.R. Johnson, S.D. Frusher and C. Gardner. – 2002. Catchability of the southern rock lobster . II. Effects of size. Mar. Freshw. Res., 53: 1149-1159. doi:10.1071/MF01244