Study on feeding and spawning behavior of Otolithes rubber (Croaker Fish) in Sistan & Baluchestan (Chahbahar) coasts in 1995, Iran

Otolithes ruber is one of the valuable commercial fishes in the South coasts of Iran and has been classified at the top level of commercial categorization, so owing to its economic importance, its biological characteristics were studied in Sistan & Baluchestan coasts in 1995. Three landing called Pozm, Bris and Remin were chosen for commercial catch sampling in this respect and 111 male fish and 149 female ones were autopsied within 7 months of evaluation. In feeding evaluation through numerical method, Squilla with 42.8% and Engraulidae with 1.4% consisted maximum and minimum percent of male fish stomach contents, respectively, and for female maximum and minimum percent of stomach contents were unidentified bony fishes with 35.7% and polynemidae family with 7%. The results showed that male fishes mature prior to females as they are smaller than females and no important difference was seen in sexual ratios in various month except March. Spawning was from December to the end of April and an outstanding spawning surge was observed from March to April. However, there was a light surge in November. The least coefficients of fatness in terms of male and female were 0.9 and 1 in April respectively and the most ones were 1.33 for male and 1.20 for female in January