Preliminary study on the fishing activities of the moonfish Mene maculate fishery in the waters of southwestern Taiwan.

Abstract

The moonfish (Mene maculata) is a common fish caught by inshore fisheries in the waters off southwestern Taiwan. Considering the sustainable utilization of fishery resources, the aims of this study are to analyze the characteristics of the temporal and spatial changes of moonfish catch location and to estimate the length-weight relationship on the moonfish. According to 2014-2016 fishery data, the primary fishing methods in this area are Taiwanese seine and trawl. Generally, moonfish is mainly caught by Taiwanese purse seine. Moonfish hotspots, located on the southwestern coast of Taiwan, produce a high catch per unit effort (CPUE). Over time, relatively distinct spatial variations have occurred in moonfish hotspots; most notably, numerous moonfish was caught in the waters offshore of Penghu in 2016. The most productive fishing season is from January to March, and the main fishing grounds are in coastal waters off southwestern Taiwan. From April to September, the fishing grounds are relatively far from the shore and somewhat scattered. By analyzing 388 moonfish samples collected from the southwestern waters of Taiwan, it indicates that positive allometric growth (b ＞ 3) for moonfish, indicating fish grew faster in weight than in length, and the good correlation between body length and body weight. Further studies are recommended to explore the relationship between environmental factors the spatio-temporal distribution of moonfish as well as the affecting factors of the L-W relationship.