Rotunno and Cowen. Temporal and spatial spawning patterns of Peprilus triacanthus 
793 
30 - 
SL = 1.72 + 0.225(Age) *• 
25 - 
r2 = 0 ' 9 m * • 
n = 60 • • ® 
• 
20 - 
•* t 
« 
15 - 
10 - 
£ 
5 - 
0 ' 
T 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 T 
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 
Number of increments (age in days) 
Figure 6 
Standard length versus the number of increments for a sub- 
sample of 1988 Frame-caught Peprilus triacanthus. 
Table 3 
Vertebral counts for Peprilus collected by Collette (1963), Horn 
1970), Ditty (1981), and in this study (Frame). 
Standard length (mm) 
range 
16 
17 
17-18 
18 
18-19 
19 
20 
n 
Collette (1963) 
P. burti 
— 
2 
92 
0 
2 
0 
0 
0 
96 
P. triacanthus 
— 
0 
4 
0 
36 
0 
138 
2 
180 
Horn (1970) 
P. burti 
6.0-115.0 
5 
262 
0 
6 
0 
0 
0 
273 
P. triacanthus 
6.0-115.0 
0 
7 
0 
62 
0 
208 
2 
279 
P. alepidotus 
6.0-115.0 
3 
176 
0 
3 
0 
0 
0 
182 
Ditty (1981) 
P. burti 
7.14-14.45 
0 
13 
9 
0 
0 
0 
0 
22 
P. triacanthus 
7.14-14.73 
0 
0 
0 
1 
8 
10 
0 
19 
P. alepidotus 
7.74-11.01 
0 
5 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
5 
Frame 
Spring 1988 
8.0-26.0 
0 
0 
0 
4 
0 
48 
0 
52 
Summer 1988 
8.0-26.0 
0 
1 
0 
6 
0 
39 
0 
46 
Spring 1989 
8.52-37.5 
0 
0 
0 
2 
0 
28 
0 
30 
Summer 1989 
8.0-38.0 
0 
0 
0 
6 
0 
39 
1 
46 
Total Frame 
8.0-38.0 
0 
1 
0 
18 
0 
154 
1 
174 
in the Atlantic. According to back-calculated hatch- 
ing dates, P. triacanthus spawns from late January 
through at least July. We did not observe any sea- 
sonal differences in body depth. However, geographic 
differences in body depth need to be further analyzed 
before discounting the existence of either a polymor- 
phic P triacanthus or a hybrid of P triacanthus and 
P burti. 
