Hyndes et al.: Age composition, growth, reproductive biology, and recruitment of Sillaginodes punctata 
265 
Table 2 
Asymptotic total length (mm), growth coefficient, maximum age (years), length at maturity (mm), age at maturity (years), and 
location of the nursery and spawning areas for Sillaginodes punctata and the Sillago species found in southwestern Australian 
waters. F = females; M = males. 
Asymptotic Growth Maximum Length at Age at 
length coefficient age maturity maturity 
{K) < T max> (LJ W m ) 
Spawning 
Species 
F 
M 
F 
M 
F 
M 
F 
M 
F 
M 
Nursery grounds 
grounds 
Sillaginodes punctata 
532 
500 
0.47 
0.53 
14 
13 
400 
400 
4 
4 
Sheltered nearshore 
Reefs 
Sillago bassensis 
329 
307 
0.26 
0.29 
7 
9 
200 
200 
3 
3 
Exposed nearshore 
Deep offshore 
Sillago burrus 
188 
179 
2.37 
2.44 
4 
4 
130 
120 
1 
1 
Sheltered nearshore 
Shallow offshore 
Sillago robusta 
169 
172 
1.03 
0.98 
6 
5 
150 
140 
2 
2 
Offshore 
Deep offshore 
Sillago schomburgkii 
333 
325 
0.52 
0.53 
7 
7 
200 
180 
2 
2 
Sheltered nearshore 
Nearshore 
Sillago vittata 
331 
312 
0.43 
0.45 
7 
6 
140 
130 
1 
1 
Sheltered nearshore 
Shallow offshore 
Females 
25 4 29 II 5 II 10 II 21 13 34 12 
Gonad 
stage 
ii 
□ 
ill 
m 
rv 
EE 
v-vn 
IB 
vm 
Month 
Figure 5 
Monthly percent frequencies of occurrence of sequential gonadal 
development stages in female and male Sillaginodes punctata >3.4 
years old. Numbers indicate sample sizes. 
that this size range of S. punctata was consis- 
tently observed in its specimens from near- 
shore waters between late September and 
early November (midspring), indicates that 
this species settles in its nearshore nursery 
grounds predominantly during this period. 
Thus, the first recruits of S. punctata enter 
those nearshore waters approximately three 
months after spawning is initiated, a time that 
corresponds to the time that the larvae of this 
species take to recruit into their nursery ar- 
eas in South Australia (Bruce, 1989; Bruce and 
Short, 1992; Fowler and Short, 1996). Recruit- 
ment of juvenile S. punctata into the shallows 
commences far earlier in South Australian 
than in southwestern Australian waters, i.e. 
June vs. September, reflecting an earlier start 
to the spawning period, i.e. March vs. June 
(cf. Bruce, 1989; Fowler and Short, 1996). 
However, because the juveniles that are re- 
cruited into nursery habitats much farther 
east in Victoria are derived from a spawning 
that occurs in South Australia (Jenkins and 
Black, 1994; Jenkins and May, 1994), their 
larvae have to travel a far longer distance to- 
wards their nursery grounds than those re- 
cruited into nearshore waters of South Austra- 
lia; thus recruitment commences far later in 
Victoria, i.e. September vs. June (Brace, 1989; 
Jenkins and May, 1994; Fowler and Short, 1996). 
After settlement, large numbers of S. 
punctata remain in the sheltered nearshore 
marine waters of the lower west coast for 
about 1.5 years (Hyndes et al., 1996a). The fact that 
the densities of juveniles were far higher in these 
waters than in nearby exposed waters and even the 
shallows of estuaries (Hyndes et al., 1996a) indicates 
that the juveniles of this species prefer sheltered 
nearshore marine habitats. This conclusion is sup- 
