420 
Abstract — Demographic parameters 
from seven exploited coral reef lutja- 
nid species were compared as a case 
study of the implications of intra- 
family variation in life histories for 
multispecies harvest management. 
Modal lengths varied by 4 cm among 
four species {Lutjanus fulviflamma, L. 
vitta, L. carponotatus, L. adetii), which 
were at least 6 cm smaller than the 
modal lengths of the largest species 
(L. gibbus, Sympliorus nematophorus, 
Aprion virescens ). Modal ages, indicat- 
ing ages of full selection to fishing 
gear, were 10 years or less for all spe- 
cies, but maximum ages ranged from 
12 (L. gibbus) to 36 years (S. nema- 
tophorus). Each species had a unique 
growth pattern, with differences in 
length-at-age and mean asymptotic 
fork length (L„), but smaller species 
generally grew fast during the first 
1-2 years of life and larger species 
grew more slowly over a longer period. 
Total mortality rates varied among 
species; L. gibbus had the highest 
mortality and L. fulviflamma , the 
lowest mortality. The variability in 
life history strategies of these tropical 
lutjanids makes generalizations about 
lutjanid life histories difficult, but the 
fact that all seven had characteristics 
that would make them particularly 
vulnerable to fishing indicates that 
harvest of tropical lutjanids should 
be managed with caution. 
Manuscript submitted 5 November 2009. 
Manuscript accepted 7 July 2010. 
Fish. Bull. 108:420-432 (2010). 
The views and opinions expressed 
or implied in this article are those 
of the author (or authors) and do not 
necessarily reflect the position 
of the National Marine Fisheries 
Service, NOAA. 
Demographic characteristics of exploited 
tropical lutjanids: a comparative analysis 
Michelle R. Heupel (contact author)' 
Ashley J. Williams 2 3 
David J. Welch 2 ' 4 
Campbell R. Davies 5 
Ann Penny 2 
Jacob P Kritzer 6 
Ross J. Marriott 7 
Bruce D. Mapstone 5 
Email address for contact author: michelle.heupel@jcu.edu.au 
1 School of Earth and Environmental Sciences 
James Cook University 
Townsville, Queensland, 4811, Australia 
2 Fishing and Fisheries Research Centre 
School of Earth and Environmental Sciences 
James Cook University 
Townsville, Queensland, 4811, Australia 
3 Oceanic Fisheries Program 
Secretariat of the Pacific Community 
BP 5, 98848 Noumea, New Caledonia 
4 Queensland Primary Industries and Fisheries 
PO Box 1085 
Oonoonba, Queensland 4811, Australia 
5 CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research 
GPO Box 1538 
Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia 
6 Environmental Defense Fund 
18 Tremont Street, Suite 850 
Boston, Massachusetts 02108 
7 Department of Fisheries WA 
Western Australian Fisheries and 
Marine Research Laboratories 
PO Box 20 
North Beach, Western Australia 6920 
Australia 
Knowledge of the life history charac- 
teristics of an exploited species can 
help elucidate inherent resilience to 
anthropogenic effects such as fishing 
(Parent and Schriml, 1995; Jennings 
et ah, 1998; Musick et al., 2000). 
Interspecific variation in life history 
characteristics may indicate that 
some species are more susceptible to 
overfishing than others. Life history 
characteristics vary widely among 
families of coral reef fish (Sale, 1991; 
Gust et al., 2002) — a feature particu- 
larly evident within the Lutjanidae. 
Some lutjanid species grow to sizes 
in excess of 1 m (e.g., cubera snapper 
[. Lutjanus cya?iopterus], red snapper 
[. L . sebae ]) and others reach smaller 
maximum sizes of less than 30 cm 
(e.g., two-spot banded snapper [L. 
biguttatus], bluestriped snapper [L. 
notatus]). Variable life spans and 
spatial distributions also have been 
recorded within the family. Lutja- 
nids are typically gonochoristic (i.e. , 
do not change sex) and often exhibit 
sex specific variation in life history 
traits (Polovina and Ralston, 1987). 
A high degree of variation in life his- 
tory strategies among reef fish spe- 
cies within a family would suggest 
it is inappropriate to apply the same 
management strategy to all those 
species. Here we consider the lutja- 
nids as a case study. 
The Lutjanidae comprises approxi- 
mately 103 species with a wide ar- 
ray of size and body form, making it 
one of the largest and most diverse 
families of fish (Carpenter and Niem, 
2001). Lutjanids are found in tropi- 
cal waters around the globe and are 
often associated with reef habitats 
(Carpenter and Niem, 2001). Lutja- 
nids are of high commercial value 
throughout the world and are taken 
regularly in artisanal, recreational, 
and commercial fisheries (Newman et 
ah, 1996; Kaunda-Arara and Ntiba, 
1997; Marriott et al., 2007; Amezcua 
et al., 2006). The propensity of lut- 
janids to aggregate, particularly for 
spawning, and their predictably reef- 
associated distribution, make them 
potentially susceptible to overfishing. 
Concerns have been raised about the 
level of harvest and sustainability 
of fishing for lutjanid populations in 
some regions (Kamukuru et al., 2005; 
Amezcua et al., 2006). 
Little is known about the specific 
spatial distribution and demograph- 
