Nelson: Abundance, growth, and mortality of young-of-the-year Lagodon rhomboides 
327 
after their shallow-water appearance. In Charlotte 
Harbor, YOY pinfish were absent in deep water un- 
til 1-3 months after they first appeared in shallow 
water. Young-of-the-year pinfish were generally re- 
stricted to depths <3.5 m in all bays. Two general 
movements were evident: from deep water to shal- 
low water in spring, and from shallow water to deep 
water in mid- to late summer, the latter movement 
being size-dependent. High abundances of pinfish 
were commonly associated with the presence of 
seagrasses. Despite differences in abundance among 
bay populations, growth and mortality rates of young- 
of-the-year pinfish were similar in all bays. 
Acknowledgments 
Funding for this study was provided in part by the 
State of Florida Recreational Fishing License and in 
part by the Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Federal Aid for Sportfish Restora- 
tion, Project Number F-43 to the Florida Department 
of Environmental Protection. The author wishes to 
thank R. Muller, who provided statistical advice and 
generated the adult indices from the MRFSS data- 
base, A. Veri-Bodie, who provided encouragement 
throughout the study, and the staff of the Fisheries- 
Independent Monitoring Program at the Florida 
Marine Research Institute for their dedication to 
sampling. Comments by K. Guindon-Tisdel, J. Lieby, 
M. Murphy, R. McMichael, J. Wallin, and D. Winkel- 
man, and three anonymous reviewers improved the 
quality of the manuscript. 
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