Laidig and Sakuma: Description of larval and juvenile Sebastes rastrelliger 
795 
Otolith characters can also be useful in separat- 
ing Sebastes rastrelliger from some other Sebastes 
species. Laidig et al. (1996) showed that the extru- 
sion check radius of S. rastrelliger ( 14.0 pm) was sig- 
nificantly different from those of S. saxicola, S. 
maliger, S. atrovirens , and the copper complex (S. 
carnatus, S. caurinus, and S. chrysomelas). It was 
not different from those of S. auriculatus or S. 
semicinctus. However, these latter two species have 
distinctly different meristic counts and pigmentation 
patterns. In addition, the extrusion check radii found 
by Laidig and Ralston (1995) for S. paucispinis, S. 
flavidus, S. entomelas, and S. mystinus were smaller 
(10.93-12.20 pm) than that for S. rastrelliger, 
whereas the extrusion check radii for S.jordani and 
S.goodei were much larger (15.15-16.96 pm). 
Postflexion Sebastes rastrelliger, from 10.0 to 27.7 
mm, grew at a rate of 0.36 mm/day. Moreno (1990) 
found that the growth rate for reared preflexion S. 
rastrelliger less than 8 mm was 0.07 mm/day. This 
slow growth rate may be attributed to laboratory 
rearing of the fish. However, slow growth rates have 
been shown for the first few weeks in S. goodei 
(Sakuma and Laidig, 1995), S. saxicola (Laidig et al., 
1996), and S.jordani (Laidig et al., 1991). Sakuma 
and Laidig ( 1995 ) observed growth rates of 0. 135 mm/ 
day in S. goodei less than 40 days old whereas 
Woodbury and Ralston (1991) noted growth rates of 
0.399-0.555 mm/day in specimens 35-170 days old. 
Laidig et al. (1996) observed growth rates of 0.125 
mm/day in S. saxicola less than 40 days old, whereas 
larvae and juveniles older than 40 days exhibited in- 
creased growth rates of 0.367 mm/day. Laidig et al. 
(1991) determined that in S.jordani there were large 
fluctuations in growth rates associated with flexion, 
with relatively slow growth prior to flexion, almost no 
growth during flexion, and relatively rapid growth af- 
ter flexion. Because the S. rastrelliger in this study had 
already undergone flexion, we expected a faster growth 
rate than that of smaller fish as recorded by Moreno 
(1990). For this reason, our growth curve does not ac- 
curately express the growth in the first few weeks of 
life; this lack of fit is consistent with the smaller than 
expected estimate ofSL at extrusion (0.15 mm). There- 
fore, extrapolating growth rates for flexion and 
preflexion larvae from our model would not be advised. 
Acknowledgments 
We would like to thank the officers and crew of the 
RV David Starr Jordan and the scientific personnel 
onboard who assisted in the collection of larval and 
juvenile fish. We also thank Mary Nishimoto for help 
in identifications during this study. 
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