Length-weight relationship of commercial fish species caught on the central coast of Espírito Santo, Southeastern Brazil

Clara de Oliveira Xavier; Patrick Lopes Serrão Leal; Joelson Musiello-Fernandes; Mauricio Hostim-Silva; Natalia Priscila Alves Bezerra

doi:10.20950/1678-2305/bip.2026.52.e995

Length-weight relationship of commercial fish species caught on the central coast of Espírito Santo, Southeastern Brazil

Authors

Clara de Oliveira Xavier Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo – Departamento de Oceanografia e Ecologia – Laboratório de Bioecologia Marinha – Vitória (ES), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0009-0004-5887-1914
Patrick Lopes Serrão Leal Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo – Departamento de Oceanografia e Ecologia – Laboratório de Bioecologia Marinha – Vitória (ES), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0043-6739
Joelson Musiello-Fernandes Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo – Departamento de Ciências Agrárias e Biológicas – Laboratório de Pesca e Aquicultura – São Mateus (ES), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6609-4474
Mauricio Hostim-Silva Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo – Departamento de Ciências Agrárias e Biológicas – Laboratório de Pesca e Aquicultura – São Mateus (ES), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5061-9125
Natalia Priscila Alves Bezerra Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo – Departamento de Oceanografia e Ecologia – Laboratório de Bioecologia Marinha – Vitória (ES), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4203-8408

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.20950/1678-2305/bip.2026.52.e995

Keywords:

artisanal fisheries, allometry, population dynamics, marine environments, fisheries management

Abstract

This study aimed to establish length–weight relationships (LWR) for fish species captured by the artisanal fleet on the central coast of Espírito Santo, Brazil. Although the landing site was specific, the fish were caught across various areas along the central coast, indicating a broader spatial range than the collection point suggests. Data were collected from February 2023 to July 2024, including fishing gear used, capture location, total length (TL), and total weight (TW) of the specimens. A total of 1,484 individuals were measured, representing 12 species from six orders and 10 families. Haemulidae was the most represented family, and Haemulon aurolineatum was the most abundant species. Caranx crysos and Balistes capriscus showed the highest mean lengths (35.50 and 34.59 cm), while H. aurolineatum and Cynoscion jamaicensis had the lowest (20.39 and 22.99 cm). Caranx crysos and Cephalopholis fulva were the only species exhibiting isometric and allometric growth, respectively (b = 2.94; b = 3.08). The remaining species showed negative allometric growth, with a ranging from 0.006 to 3.798, b from 1.152 to 3.08, and r2 from 0.4758 to 0.9636. These results provide biological information for key commercial species and support actions for sustainable fisheries management and conservation in Espírito Santo.

References

Abreu, J. S., Di Beneditto, A. P. P., Martins, A. S., & Zappes, C. A. (2020). Pesca artesanal no município de Guarapari, estado do Espírito Santo: Uma abordagem sobre a percepção de pescadores que atuam na pesca de pequena escala. Sociedade & Natureza, 32, 59-74. https://doi.org/10.14393/SN-v32-2020-46923

Costa, M., Tubino, R., & Monteiro Neto, C. (2018). Lengthbased estimates of growth parameters and mortality rates of fish populations from a coastal zone in southeastern Brazil. Zoologia, 35, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.3897/zoologia.35.e22235

Costa, M. R., Pereira, H. H., Neves, L. M., & Araújo, F. G. (2014). Length-weight relationships of 23 fish species from southeastern Brazil. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 30, 230–232. https://doi.org/10.1111/jai.12275

Dias, J. F., Fernandez, W. S., & Schmidt, T. C. S. (2014). Length-weight relationship of 73 fish species caught in the southeastern inner continental shelf region of Brazil. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Research, 42(1), 127-136. https://doi.org/10.3856/vol42-issue1-fulltext-10

Ferreira, B. P., Corrêa, F. C., & Ferraz, A. N. (1998). Relações morfométricas em peixes recifais da zona econômica exclusiva brasileira, região nordeste. Boletim Técnico Científico do CEPENE, 6(1), 61-76.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (2012). The state of world fisheries and aquaculture. FAO.

Froese, R. (2006). Cube law, condition factor and weight-length relationships: History, meta-analysis and recommendations. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 22(4), 241-253. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0426.2006.00805.x

Froese, R., & Binohlan, C. (2000). Empirical relationships to estimate asymptotic length, length at first maturity and length at maximum yield per recruit in fishes. Journal of Fish Biology, 56(4), 758-773. https://doi.org/10.1006/jfbi.1999.1194

Froese, R., Tsikliras, A. C., & Stergiou, K. I. (2011). Editorial note on weight-length relations of fishes. Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria, 41(4), 261-263. https://doi.org/10.3750/AIP2011.41.4.01

Frota, L. O., Costa, P. A. S., & Braga, A. C. (2004). Lengthweight relationships of marine fishes from the central Brazilian coast. Naga, WorldFish Center Quarterly, 27(1-2), 20-26.

Goodridge Gaines, L. A., Olds, A. D., Henderson, C. J., Connolly, R. M., Schlacher, T. A., Jones, T. R., & Gilby, B. L. (2020). Linking ecosystem condition and landscape context in the conservation of ecosystem multifunctionality. Biological Conservation, 243, 108479. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108479

Guabiroba, H. C., & Joyeux, J.-C. (2018). Length-weight relationships for reef fishes in a southwestern Atlantic tropical oceanic island. Pan American Journal of Aquatic Sciences, 13(1), 84-87. http://panamjas.org/pdf_artigos/PANAMJAS_13%281%29_84-87.pdf

Joyeux, J.-C., Giarrizzo, T., Macieira, R. M., Spach, H. L., & Vaske Jr., T. (2008). Length-weight relationships for Brazilian estuarine fishes along a latitudinal gradient. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 24(1), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0426.2008.01062.x

Knox, W., & Trigueiro, A. (2015). Saberes, narrativas e conflitos na pesca artesanal. EDUFES.

Mehanna, S. F., & Farouk, A. E. (2021). Length-weight relationship of 60 fish species from the eastern Mediterranean Sea, Egypt. Frontiers in Marine Science, 8, 625422. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.625422

Ministério da Pesca e Aquicultura (MPA). (2011). Pesca artesanal. MPA. Retrieved from http://mpa.gov.br/index.php/pescampa/artesanal

Ministério da Pesca e Aquicultura (MPA) (2019). Pesca no Brasil. MPA. Retrieved from https://www.gov.br/agricultura/pt-br/assuntos/mpa/pesca/pesca-no-brasil

Musiello-Fernandes, J., Oliveira, P. C., Araújo, S. C., Abreu, J. S., Di Benedito, A. P. M., Braga, A. A., Hostim-Silva, M., & Zappes, C. A. (2021). Artisanal fishing on the coast of Espírito Santo state, southeastern Brazil: An approach to socio-environmental oceanography. Boletim do Instituto de Pesca, 46(4), e610. https://doi.org/10.20950/1678-2305.2020.46.4.610

Rousseau, Y., Watson, R. A., Blanchard, J. L., & Fulton, E. A. (2019). Evolution of global marine fishing fleets and the response of fished resources. Proceedings of theNational Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116(25), 12238-12243. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1820344116

Ruiz-Campos, G., Ramírez-Valdez, A., González-Guzmán, S., González-Acosta, A. F., & Acosta Zamorano, D. (2010). Length-weight and length-length relationships for nine rocky tidal pool fishes along the Pacific coast of the Baja California Peninsula, Mexico. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 26, 118-119. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0426.2009.01344.x

Santos, G. M. D., & Santos, A. C. M. D. (2005). Sustentabilidade da pesca na Amazônia. Estudos Avançados, 19(54), 165-182. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0103-40142005000200010

Silva, A. P. (2014). Pesca artesanal brasileira: Aspectos conceituais, históricos, institucionais e prospectivos (Boletim de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento / Embrapa Pesca e Aquicultura, 3). Embrapa Pesca e Aquicultura.

Teixeira-de-Mello, F., Gonzalez-Bergonzoni, I., Viana, F., & Saizar, C. (2011). Length-weight relationships of 26 fish species from the middle section of the Negro River (Tacuarembó-Durazno, Uruguay). Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 27, 1413-1415. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0426.2011.01810.x

Viana, A., Lucena-Frédou, F., Ménard, F., Frédou, T., Ferreira, V., Lira, A., & Le Loc’H, F. (2016). Length–weight relations of 70 fish species (Actinopterygii) from tropical coastal region of Pernambuco, Northeast Brazil. Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria, 46(3), 271-277. https://doi.org/10.3750/AIP2016.46.3.12

Viana, J. P. (2013). Recursos pesqueiros do Brasil: situação dos estoques, da gestão e sugestões para o futuro. Boletim Regional, Urbano e Ambiental, (8).

Xavier, C. de O., Lopes Serrão Leal, P., Mussiello-Fernandes, J., Hostim-Silva, M., & Bezerra Alves, N. P. (2026). Supplementary materials_Weight-length relationship of commercial fish species caught on the central coast of Espírito Santo, Southeastern Brazil. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19225268

Wang, J. Q., Huang, L. M., Li, J., Zhang, Y. Z., Zhu, G. P., & Chen, X. J. (2016). Length-weight relationships of 45 fish species in the Min River Estuary, East China Sea. Journal of Applied Ichthyology. https://doi.org/10.1111/jai.12910

Wang, Y., Pan, X., Wang, M., Li, Z., & Shi, X. (2024). The length-weight relationships of twelve fish species from the Heishui River, China. Journal of Applied Ichthyology. https://doi.org/10.1155/2024/6667189