Growth history of Atlantic cod throughout their first reproductive cycle.

<p>At the start of the experiment the fish were two years old (males, n = 49; females, n = 84). Specific growth rate SGR (%) is indicated by horizontal line (males) and dotted line (females). Somatic condition factor (K) is displayed by black dots (males) and white diamonds (females). The bar underneath indicate the light regime corresponding to the natural environmental photoperiod conditions in Bodø (67°N), Norway. Sea water temperature is represented by blue diamonds with a dashed line. Asterisks (*) indicates significant differences between sexes at a particular sampling point at P < 0.05 (two-tailed t-test). Different superscript letters highlight significant differences within the same sex throughout the reproductive cycle at P < 0.05 (Tukey's multiple comparison test; lower-case letters: males; capital letters: females). Sampling points of fast skeletal muscle for 454 pyrosequencing are indicated by yellow circles.