Indirect validation of the age-reading method for Pacific cod using otoliths from marked and recaptured fish

• Published in: Fishery bulletin (Washington, D.C.) Vol. 103; no. 1; pp. 153 - 160
• Main Authors: Roberson, Nancy E, Kimura, Daniel K, Gunderson, Donald R, Shimada, Allen M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: National Marine Fisheries Service 01.01.2005
• Subjects: Codfish; Distribution; Fish populations; Marine; Statistics; Bering Sea
• ISSN: 0090-0656; 1937-4518

Two examples of indirect validation are described for age-reading methods of Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus). Aging criteria that exclude faint translucent zones (checks) in counts of annuli and criteria that include faint zones were both tested. Otoliths from marked and recaptured fish were used to back-calculate the length of each fish at the time of its release by using measurements of the area of annuli. Estimated fish size at time of release and actual observed fish size were similar, supporting the assumption that translucent zones are laid down on an annual basis. A second method for validating reading criteria used otolith age and von Bertalanffy parameters, estimated from the tagging data, to predict how much each fish grew in length after tagging. We found that otolith aging criteria applied to otoliths from tagged and recovered Pacific cod predicted quite accurately the growth increments that we observed in these specimens. These results provide further evidence that the current aging criteria are not underestimating the age of the fish and support our current interpretation of checks (i.e., as subannual marks). We expect these indirect validations to advance age determination for Pacific cod, which in turn would enhance development of stock assessment methods based on age structure for this species in the eastern Bering Sea.