394 
Development of laboratory-reared 
sheepshead, Archosargus 
probatocephalus (Pisces: Sparidae)* 
John W. Tucker Jr. 
Sabine R. Alshuth 
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution 
5600 North U S. 1, Fort Pierce, Florida 34946 
Twenty-two sparid species are 
known from the western Atlantic 
and 15 from eastern coastal waters 
of the United States and Canada, 
including two in the genus Archo- 
sargus'. A. probatocephalus , sheep- 
shead, and A. rhomboidalis, Carib- 
bean sea bream (Johnson, 1978; 
Robins et al., 1991). Two previous 
publications have provided partial 
descriptions of mid- to late larval 
and juvenile sheepshead based on 
wild specimens. Hildebrand and 
Cable ( 1938) described wild sheeps- 
head larvae and juveniles, begin- 
ning with 6-mm-TL larvae. Mook 
(1977) described osteology of 2-25 
mm wild sheepshead, with notes on 
pigmentation and illustrations of 
mid- to late larvae and a juvenile. 
Rathbun (1892) reported a dia- 
meter of about 800 pm for sheeps- 
head eggs. Houde and Potthoff 
(1976) gave a comprehensive de- 
scription of Caribbean sea bream 
reared from collected eggs. For 
other genera in this region, partial 
descriptions exist for scup ( Stenoto - 
mus chrysops) eggs and larvae 
(Kuntz and Radcliffe, 1917; Hilde- 
brand and Schroeder, 1928; Wheat- 
land, 1956) and pinfish ( Lagodon 
rhomboides) eggs, larvae, and juve- 
niles (Hildebrand and Cable, 1938; 
Cardeilhac, 1976). This paper de- 
scribes the size and shape, morph- 
ometries, pigmentation, feeding, 
and growth for a series of sheeps- 
head reared from eggs to 67-day- 
old juveniles. 
Materials and methods 
Specimens 
Eggs and milt were stripped from 
a pair of running ripe adults caught 
in the Indian River just west of Fort 
Pierce Inlet on 4 April 1984 (398-g 
female, 367-g male). Larval and 
juvenile specimens were reared 
from 14,000 eggs stocked in a 2.4- 
m diameter cylindrical fiberglass 
tank holding 3,500 L of water. Fil- 
tered estuarine water was supplied 
from the Indian River, and ex- 
change was increased from zero at 
day 5 to 300% per day by day 30. 
During the culture period, water 
temperature was 22.1-33.2°C 
(mean 27.0°) and salinity, 27-36 
ppt. For the first 7 days, tempera- 
ture was 23°C and salinity 34-36 
ppt. The tank was in a greenhouse 
that admitted 35% diffuse natural 
light. The fish were fed cultured 
rotifers, Brachionus plicatilis (days 
3-31); cultured artemia nauplii to 
adults (days 14-47); cultured and 
wild copepods, Tigriopus japonicus 
and Acartia tonsa (days 18-67); bay 
scallop and penaeid shrimp meal 
(days 24-77); commercial dry 
salmon starter feed (days 27-100); 
wild crab larvae (occasionally dur- 
ing days 28-45); and commercial 
soft-moist salmon feed (days 36- 
80). Details of spawning, culture 
conditions, and foods are given in 
Tucker ( 1987). Specimens were pre- 
served in 5% formalin buffered with 
sodium acetate; 145 of the preserved 
specimens and several live speci- 
mens were used for the description. 
Measurements and counts 
Measurements were made with an 
ocular micrometer in a stereomicro- 
scope, except that standard and to- 
tal length of postflexion larvae 
longer than 9 mm SL were deter- 
mined with a millimeter scale. 
Mean diameters of the yolk and oil 
globule were determined and vol- 
umes calculated for ten specimens 
of each age from 2.5 haf (hours af- 
ter fertilization) until yolk and oil 
were exhausted. Notochord length 
(NL), standard length (SL), total 
length (TL), snout length, horizon- 
tal eye diameter, predorsal length 
(snout to first dorsal spine [snout- 
DSpl]), snout to first dorsal ray 
(snout-DRal), snout to pelvic spine 
(snout-PvSpl), preanus length 
(snout-anus), and body depth at 
anus were measured as in Houde 
and Potthoff (1976). Other mea- 
surements were upper jaw length — 
snout tip to posterior margin of 
maxillary; head length (HL) — hori- 
zontal distance from tip of snout to 
anterior margin of cleithrum at 
body midline; head depth — great- 
est vertical depth of head; body 
depth at pelvic fin — vertical dis- 
tance from dorsal to ventral body 
margin at base of second pelvic ray 
(body at Pv); and caudal peduncle 
depth — least vertical distance from 
dorsal to ventral body margin. 
Most specimens were fairly trans- 
parent, and internal structures 
such as myomeres were visible dur- 
ing preflexion without clearing and 
staining. Vertebrae were not counted. 
The following counts were taken 
* Contribution 1142 from Harbor Branch 
Oceanographic Institution, Fort Pierce, 
Florida. 
Manuscript accepted 27 September 1996. 
Fishery Bulletin 95:394-401 (1997). 
