Striped Mullet FMP - NC Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources

200 mm FL [Leard et al. 1995 (Appendix1, Table 2)]. Lengths at annuli formations were variedamong studies that used both scales and otoliths for aging [Leard et al. 1995 (Appendix 1,Table 2)].AdultsAdults grow at a rate of 38 to 64 mm per year (Broadhead 1953; NCDMF 2001b).Spring and summer growth is twice as fast as fall and winter growth (Broadhead 1953; Rivas1980). Adults grew 7 mm in each of the first and fourth quarters of the year, and averaged 16and 19 mm growth in the second and third quarters of the year in a Florida tagging study(Broadhead 1958).Otolith growth is closely related to body growth for fishes (Helfman et al. 1997).Incremental otolith growth in striped mullet occurs primarily from July to November in Louisiana(Thompson et al. 1991) and June to October in North Carolina (NCDMF 2001a). Thompson etal. (1991) indicated that energy required for somatic growth was reallocated for reproductionand post-spawning recovery (during the fall and winter, November - March). Summer growthdepression in striped mullet (age 1+) was observed in Texas, associated with prolongedelevation of water temperatures and potential shifts in food types (Moore 1973; Cech et al.1975). A similar cessation in marginal incremental growth in otoliths was observed for olderstriped mullet in August and September in North Carolina (NCDMF 2001a).Males and females are at similar lengths at early ages (< age 2), after which, femalesgrow larger and live longer [Table 5.1 (Mamhoudi et al. 1990; DMF unpublished data)]. Largevariability in size at early ages is seen in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia stocks(Foster 2001; McDonough 2001;NCDMF 2001a). North Carolina striped mullet appear toachieve larger mean lengths at earlier ages than more southern U.S. states (Bichy 2000;NCDMF 2001a). For example, mean length for age 1 striped mullet (both sexes) in SouthCarolina was 257 mm, substantially smaller than males and females (317, 346 mm) in NorthCarolina (McDonough 2001; DMF unpublished data). On average, age 2 males and females inSouth Carolina were 310 mm compared to 344 mm and 394 mm in North Carolina (McDonough2001; DMF unpublished data). Since birth date is standardized as January 1 for agingconvention along the U.S. east coast, earlier spawning times and true birth dates in NorthCarolina may contribute to slightly larger mean lengths at young ages.20