Population genetic studies on the oil sardine (Sardinella longiceps)

The Indian oil sardine, commercial fishery of India. Sardinella longiceps, is a major The fishery presently exploited is composed of populations drawn mainly from Mangalore/ Karwar ,Calicut, Cochin and Quilon from the west coast. It is also caught from Mandapam and Madras on the east coast. The oil sardine fishery is exploited and managed as unit stock . In other words , it is assumed t hat the fishery is supported by interbreeding populations . On the contrary , the preliminary morphomeristic studies of its sample populations had revealed that the fishery may be composed of two or more heterogeneous populations (Devanesan and Chidambaram, 1943; Prabhu and Dhulkhed 1972 ; Antony Raja, 1973) . On the other hand,it is well known that a thorough knowledge on the population genetic structure of the fishery is essential for scientif ic exploitation and conservation of any fishery resources . Besides, a recurring problem inherent with the oil sardine fishery of India is the short and long term fluctuations experienced in its annual abundance. The pr6bable causes of the problem remain undetected and unexplained inspite o f exhaustive information available on its biology and fishery (Anon,1979)