6392 specimen of sardines were sampled during the period 1980-1984. The spawning
season was ca1culated from the monthly percentages of mature individuals, gonadosomatic index, condition factor and viscera1 fat. The size and age at first maturation and the size/weight ratio were calculated.Pendant la periode 1980-1984 des echantillonages biologiques regulieres sur
la sardine ont ete realises et 6932 exemplaires ont été examinées. On determine
la saison de ponte a partir de l'evolution mensuelle du pourcentage des individus
mûrs et de la variation du l'indice gonadosomatique, le facteur de condition
et la graisse viscerale. On calcule aussi la taille et l'age de premiere maturation
et les equations taille/poid vive et poid eviscere

Porteiro-Lago, C. (Carmen)

Pérez-Contreras, M.N. (María Nélida)

Álvarez, F. (Federico)

English

Repositorio Institucional Digital del IEO

International Counci1 for theExploration of the SeaC.M. 1985/H:19Pe1agic Fish Committee•Some observations on the bio10gy of sardine (Sardina pilchardus Wa1b.) off GaliciaNW Spain.byN. PEREZ, C. PORTEIRO and F. ALVAREZInstituto Espano1 de OceanografiaOri11amar, 47, Vigo - EspanaSUMMARY6392 specimen of sardines were sampled during the period 1980-1984. The spawningseason was ca1culated from the month1y percentages of mature individuals, gonados~matic index, condi tion factor and viscera1 fat. The size and age at first maturation and the size/weight ratio were calculated.RESUMEPendant la periode 1980-1984 des echantillonages bi010giques regulieres sur1a sardine ont ete realises et 6932 exemplaires ont ete examinees. On determine1a saison de ponte a partir de l'evolution mensuelle du pourcentage des individus• murs et de la variation du l' indice gonadosomatique, le facteur de condi tionet 1a graisse viscerale. On calcule aussi 1a taille et l'age de premiere maturationet les equations taille/poid vive et poid eviscere.INTRODUCTIONThe sardine, Sardina pilchardus (Walb.) is the. target species of a tradi tionalfishery on the Atlantic coast of the lberian Peninsula. lt constitutes themost important coastal pelagic resource, both for the volume of the catchesand for its social and economical significance. Upwelling in this area makesthe study of this species particularly interesting (fig. 1).Biological aspects of the lberian sardine (VIIlc and lXa lCES divisions) werepreviously described by De Buen (1927), Oliver y Navarro (1952) and Andreu(1955) , Machado Cruz (1955), Antunes et al (1973) , Sobral (1975) , Barraca et-~- 2 -al (1977) and Monteiro y Jorge (1982) in Portugal, Fernandez y Navarro (1952),from Santander. There are some papers about the sardine from nearby areas:Letaconnoux (1948) and Arbault et Lacroix (1972) in the Bay of Biscay and Hickling(1945) in Cornwall.The objective of this work is to .update some aspects of Iberian sardine biology.MATERIAL AND METHODSPurse seine catches landed in the port of Vigo and other catches made duringacoustic surveys ("Sardina 82", "Saracus 83" and "Saracus 84") carried outduring August each year have been sampled. Between January 1980 and January1985, a total of 6932 specimen have been examined.Total and gutted weight (0.01 gr), length (mm), sex, stage of sexual maturity,visceral fat content, and gonad weight (0.01 gr) were measured. Otoliths wereremoved for age determination. •A key based on the ones elaborated by Pinto y Andreu (1957) and Parnell (1974)was adapted to determine the stage of sexual maturi ty. The gonadosomatic index,condition factor and fat index were obtained from the following equations:Gonadosomatic index:Condition factor:Fat index:Gonadal weight x 10Gutted weightTotal weight x 1003Length% x visceral fat stageThe spawning season was determined by means of monthly measurements of thepercentage of mature individuals between 1980 and 1984, the gonadosomatic indeebetween 1981 to 1982 and the condi tion factor and fat index between 1981 and1984. The condition factor and the gonadosomatic index were calculated fromindividuals between 18 and 20 cm. This avoids the errors due to the variationsof these indexes with size. The size and age at first maturity were calculatedfrom the sampies of the first quarter of 1981, that period was chosen becausebeing included in the spawning season, the sampies showed the most adequaterange of sizes for the purpose.The ratios at different ages were calculated from 6020 specimen sampled from1980 to 1984.RESULTSThe spawning season extended from early autumn to the end of spring, with winterand spring maxima,(fig.3),coinciding with high values of the gonadosomatic index(fig. 4a). The period of sexual inactivity is in summer, which correspondsto the period of maximum weight per length and maximum visceral fat content (fig.4c).- 3 -Different resul ts were found in 1982, when a delay in the increase of the fatindex and of the condition factor took place, coinciding with low values ofthe gonadosomatic index at the end of the year. The decrease of the conditionfactor (fig. 4b) and the visceral fattening in 1982-1983 coincided with lowupwelling rates (Cabanas et al. 1985). The spawning season is the same as thatfound by other authors in the same area (De Buen, 1927; Oliver y Navarro, 1952).Andreu (1955) mentions a non-spawning season from August to September, Anaden(1954) found two spawning seasons in sardine from Vigo. Ferreiro and Labarta(1982), after studying the icthyoplankton of the Ria de Vigo, postulated twomain spawning seasons, in November and March. Barraca et ale (1977) and Re(1981) describe a long spawning season on the portuguese coast from autumnto the late spring. Sola and Franco (1984) record much higher concentrationsof sardine eggs and larvae in Cantabrian than in Galician waters.The size and age at first maturation were estimated from eye-fitted curves.These values were 14.5 cm in females, 14 cm in males and 1.2 years in both... sexes (fig. 5a). Table I shows these values in different regions.Fig. 5b shows the percentage of female per age during the period 1980-1984.Changes in the sex ratio within and between years are small. Nevertheless thevalues of the VI + female groups are always above 50%. The size/weight and size/gutted weight ration were calculated every three months. Table 11 shows the values.•REFERENCESANADON, E., (1954). Estudios sobre la sardina deI Noroeste espanol. P.Inst. Biol. Apl. Tomo XVIII, 43-106.ANDREU, B., (1955). The sexuality of sardines. General Fisheries Council forthe Mediterranean. Technical paper NQ 1.ANTUNES, A.D., SERRANO, M.D. et JORGE, I.M., (1973). Etude de la feconditede la sardine des cotes portugaises. Bol. Inf. do I.B.M. Lisboa,NQ 12.ARBAULT, S. et LACROIX, N., (1972) . Reproduction de la sardine, de 1 1 anchoiset du sprat dans le Golfe de Gascogne en 1971. Comparaison deszones-test en 1970 et 1971. ICES, C.M. 1972/J:5.BARRACA, F.I., JORGE, I.M. et MONTEIRO,C.C., (1977). La sardine Sardina pilchardus(Walb.) de la c6te continentale portugaise, pendant 1976. ICES,C.M. 1977/J:15.CABANAS, J.M., PORTEIRO, C. and ALVAREZ, F., (1985). Upwelling and sardineSardina pilchardus (Walb.) in Galician waters. Probable relations.1 Q International Simposiun on the Iberian Coastal Upwelling. Lisboa.CRUZ, J .A., (1957). A sardinha do norte de Portuga, Sardina pilchardus (Walb.)caracteristicas etarias e de reprodw;ao. Notas e Etudos do LB.M ...Lisboa, NQ 14.- 4 -FERNANDEZ, F. Y NAVARRO, F. (1952). La sardina de Santander. Observaciones en 1950y 1951. Boletin lnst. Esp. Oceano. 55.FERREIRO, J.M. and LABARTA, U. (1982). Distribution and abundance of sardine eggs,Sardina pilchardus (Walb.) from the Ria of Vigo (Galician coast, NWSpain). 1979-1980. ICES. C.M. 1982/H:57.HICKLlNG, C. F. (1945). The seasonal cycle in the Cornish Pilchard, Sardinapilchardus (Walb.). Journ. Mar. Biol. Ass. 26(2):115-138.LARANETA, M.G. (1976). Size and age of first maturation, and relative fecundityin Sardina pilchardus (Walb.) off Castellon (Spanish mediterraneancoast). lCES. C.M. 1976/J:4.LETACONNOUX, R. (1948). Notes sur la sardine du Golfe de Gascogne. Rev. Trav.off Peches Marit. Tomo XIV. Gase. 1-4. NQ 53-56.MONTElRO, C., JORGE, I.M. (1982). Age and growth of Sardina pilchardus (Walb.).from Portuguese Coast. (ICES Division IXa).ICES. C.M. 1982/H:19.OLIVER, M. Y NAVARRO, F. (1952). Nuevos datos sobre la sardina de Vigo. Bol.lnst. Esp. Oceano. 56.PARNELL, W.G. (1974). On the maturation cycle of the pilchard, Sardina pilchardus(Walb:) off the south-west coast of England.ICES. C.M. 1974/J:ll.PINTO, J. et ANDREU, B.' (1957). Echelle pour la caracterisation des phasesevolutives de l'ovarie de sardina Sardina pilchardus (Walb.) enrapport avec l'histophysiologie de la gonade.General Fisheries Council for the Mediterranean. Technical paperNQ 46.RE, P. (1981). Seasonal occurence, Mortality and Dimensions of Sardine eggs.'"Sardina pilchardus (Walb.) off Portugal. Cybium, 32 serie, 1981,5 (4).SOBRAL, M.C. (1975). Contribution a l'etude du plancton et reproduction dela sardina et anchois dans 1a cote portugaise.ICES. C.M. 1975/J:l1.SOLA, A. and FRANCO, C. (1984). lcthyoplankton survey of interesting commercialspecies of the Cantabric and Galician shelves.ICES. C.M. 1984/H:42.•5 -AREA AUTHOR YEAR LENGTH AGEBay of Biscay and• During theLe GaU 19373rdEngl ish Channel yearSouth of the End of 2ndLe GaU • 1937Bri tish Isles year• End of 2ndBay of Biscay Furnestin 1945 15.5 cm.yearHodgson and • 20.5 cm. 4 yearsCorn",.11 1949RichardsonEnd of ls~Vigo Andreu 1955 14.4 cm. B~§ining of2 yearsMediterranean Andreu 1955 10.5 cm.11.7 cm. ~ Less tt.t:Tf:edi terranean Larrafieta 197611.3 cm. e5 one yearCentral and SouthMonteiro et al 1982 1.9 yEa:SPortugal-----_.--14.5 cm. ~Vigo Pcrez et a1 1985 14 cm. e5 1.2 yea.:-s14.5 cm. iTable 1.- Weight and age at first maturity ( • Cited by Andreu)1980 1981 1982 1983 1984a 0.004441 0.003536 0.002778 0.005515 0.0036281- b 3.203230 3.273284 3.351108 3.131685 3.255796r 0.998792 0.993786 0.991499 0.999483 0.998959a 0.003911 0.003783 0.008839 0.OU345 0.00332629 b 3.273650 3.264198 2.976719 2.226382 3.288380r 0.991787 0.994980 0.995207 0.995371 0.996732a 0.004612 0.003903 0.008080 0.006180 0.002 993 9 b 3.263551 3.298282 3.009493 3.104906 3.42~284•r 0.988732 0.996567 0.998868 0.997940 O. .!:>177a 0.003509 0.002972 0.0(\4017 0.0(\4025 0.0153844· b 10106 3.3'/0415 "";l.?61912 3.249337 2.520908r (\. ~J(,' 6 O. 9/278 O. "l,b218 (\.~ ':>856 0.997 24J980 1 81 I 82a (\.0 4 75 0.00·!!:>91 0.003 /9\0 b _.:~8.49 ? %':>':>'/9 . 245245r CI.\!. 42 O. 91';81 0.!lfl9.42a 0.(\0 7?9 0.004/ 5 0.(\('9 40b . 2'~8 0 :1.14~~?6 ?902349r O.. "1924 O.~,q-~::'41 0.~?1?69a Cl. (I()j 27 O.OlJ~l 10 0.0100':>3b ~. 91' 95 3. 3~.<073 ?892478r C'. ~I ) 244 O.?9n07 0.9 8391a 0.()(\'U68 0.00:1;:>09 0.004139~. b • j. c665 ,.;>"1,,/35 3.?20516r ( .~. 1/;:>6 0.C,9/871 0.9965 3TABLE 11.- values of a, band r of size/live weight for period1980-1984 and sizelgutted weight far periad 1980-1982.•Cms":"--."-,- 6 -VIII C\I;!I: •.J.....\.........~ .--..._.-.....' :'O ••,••. ,1..12 11 '4 1~ " 11 ,e l' 20 .., '2 ]) 2A 2~Ixa9 10 11••·30·N _-------------------i36·00'N L.. ~_.IFig. 2. Size distribution of sampies.IfFig. 1. Geographical area.N~~ I • ? ? N = 36060 C?~ N = 3325I>00>7~>~•22~>00'00•1.980 1981 1982 1983 1984 ??n: 3 J fl n=~7~ ~ 2.) n; '::.47 n ~ 300.,.STAGE80 1lI6040 V\ 'l20 /'bi I ' T-,- r--r- IF M A M J J A S 0 N 0 J F M A M J J A S 0 N 0 J F M A M J J A S 0 N 0 J F M A M J J .. S 0 N 0 J F M A M J J A S o N 0.,.40FMAMJJASONDJFMAMJJASONDJFMAMJJASONDJFMAMJJASONDJFMAMJJ MONTHSFig. 3. Changes in maturity stages 111 (prespawning) and IV (spawning).~_J ~GI,.~'.2~ 0"0" N, 2 ~20)'.00 n N' J~'.7~~O.25_.&.~~..~.~"-- ..... - .... ... :_":- _ ....M M S N M M S N, 981 , 982. CF ___ d'a'" N: 819-~ i N: 922,.0 I? (XlI.9b)" ,.8r;(/.7 /~_..L.--~M M S N M M S N M M S N M M J N'.98, '.982 1911J 1.911.VF2C)"3'.' " 2']'",. 2' ]1",. J' •• QuarterFig. 4. Gonadosomatic index (a)tlbondition factor (b) and visceral fa~ndex (c).- 9 -~100 ·,.99100.a) 50 1980b) 50- - • -~--N :1006,'"'."13 15 17 ems.0 1 11 III m· y n •~ 100I50- - - - - - . -198150 - - - - N:137611 13 15 17 ems . 0 JI JI[ IJ' T u·• 100~100? • Cf' -_.~--50 1ge2N:1986500 JI m IJ' V 11[."13 15 17 ems.100~100 -~- 1983!lO -N:807? .0"50'lI.0 IT m cr y• 100111 V VII .ge el.5550- - -~-1984N:845o II m 1!1.. oge elo!>SFig. 5. Maturity ogives fitted by eye (a) and sex ratio by age (b).

Some observations on the biology of sardine (Sardina pilchardus Walb.) off Galicia NW Spain

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