Morphometric criteria for selection of high-yield phenotypes in Epinephelus marginatus (Lowe, 1834) under varying farming systems
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20950/1678-2305/bip.2026.52.e991Keywords:
Marine aquaculture, Phenotypic selection, Indirect selection, Carcass yield, SustainabilityAbstract
This study evaluated morphometric traits as indirect selection criteria for high-yield phenotypes in dusky grouper (Epinephelus marginatus) reared under three commercial production systems: recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), marine cages (MC), and estuarine ponds (EP). Fish (n = 55) were harvested at 730 days to assess carcass weight (CW) and meat volume (MV). Differences among systems were analyzed using analysis of variance followed by Tukey’s test (p < 0.05). Paired morphometric traits standard length (SL), head length (HL), body height (BH), and body width (BW) were evaluated through quadrant classification, and CW and MV were compared between quadrants using Welch’s t-test. SL × BH was the best-performing criterion in RAS and BH × BW in EP for CW, while no significant differences in CW were observed in MC. Overall, no significant differences in MV were detected among quadrants in any of the farming systems. Despite the limited sample size, these findings suggest that non-lethal morphometric traits may be useful for phenotypic indirect selection for a higher meat yield in dusky grouper aquaculture, depending on the production system.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Matheus Luiz da Costa Silva, Graziela Tarôco, Caio Augusto Perazza, Alexandre Wagner Silva Hilsdorf, Leila de Genova Gaya
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