NATURAL HISTORY OF REDFISH, ETC., OF TEXAS 



149 



of the youngest year class by a comparit;on of the bimonthly samples (Table 7), but 

 for the present purjiose of presenting all distinguishable year classes at one time this 

 error may be disregarded. 



A smoothed length-frequency distribution of these redfish shows the first three 

 year classes to be marked by modal lengths at 30, 53, and 63 centimeters (11.8, 20.8, 

 and 24.8 inches). (See fig. lOA.) Following these definite year groups, several 

 modes are evident at about 75, 79, and 84 centimeters, and these modes are believed 

 to be composed of fish in the fourth and fifth year classes. The mode at 79 centi- 

 meters is probably accidental and made up of fish either in the fourth year and 

 belonging with the 75-centimeter group, or in the fifth year and belonging with the 

 84-centimeter group. The small number of fish lying within the probable range of 

 the fourth year class magnifies this abnormal or chance mode at 79 centimeters. It 

 must be realized, of course, that a considerable overlapping occurs among the various 

 year classes, particularly as age and size increase. 



Table 9. — Length-frequency dislrihulion of redfish collecled with experinienlnl gear in August and 



September, 19:^1! 



In a consideration of the reliability of the above age estimates, it should be 

 recognized that the redfish attains an extremely large size. While a length of only 

 105 centimeters (42.5 inches) was the largest size secured during the past investiga- 

 tion along the Texas coast, many fish reach a much larger size, with the maximum 

 length of the species recorded by Welsh and Breder (1923, p. 184) at 152 centi- 

 meters, or about 5 feet. With the increment in length for Texas fish during the 

 first year about 34 cemtimeters (13.4 inches), during the second year about 20 centi- 

 meters (7.8 inches), and during the third and fourth years about 10 centimeters each 

 (4 inches), it is most likely that the growth increment during the fifth year would be 

 but little less, causing the fish to have a general average length of about 83 to 85 

 centimeters (33 inches) at the end of its fifth year of life. 



A series of measurements made upon 257 market redfish caught in a commercial 

 seine during November and December, 1925, is presented by Table 10 and illus- 

 trated graphically by Figure lOB. A smoothed length-frequency distribution 

 (fig. lOB) shows the presence of the first three year classes (I, II, and III) with 

 length modes existing at 35, 54, and 64 centimeters (13.7,'21.2, and 25.2 inches) and 

 with a slight mode at 74 centimeters (29.1 inches), and probably representing fish 



