ASPECTS OF LEOPARD CORAL GROUPER (Plectropomus leopardus) REPRODUCTION IN INDONESIA
Abstract: Leopard coral
grouper, Plectropomus leopardus is one of the most economically important
finfish fish in Indonesia and the demand for the grouper is rapidly increasing
in Asia and the Pacific. Grouper exports from Bali were 1,613 mt in 2001, 2,082
mt in 2002 and 2,861 mt in 2003. Understanding the reproductive biology of
fishes is an important component in developing mariculture and in the
management of capture fisheries. This study reports on the reproductive biology
of 86 coral groupers collected from various locations in Indonesia. The length
and weight of these fish were recorded and related to gonad development. There
was a strong relationship between length and weight; weight being proportional
to the length raised to the power (b value) 3.2. As the value of b was greater
than 3, this suggests that growth is allometric. Histological analysis 73% of
the fish were immature, 19% were in transition from females to males, only 4%
were male, and only 2 fish (2%) had mature gonads: these were female. The sex
of 2 fish could not be determined. From these data it can be seen that the
leopard coralgrouper has asynchronous gonad development. The two fish that were
mature contained 343,980 and 429,259 oocytes and three distinct sizes of
oocytes could be found. This suggests that the grouper is a multiple spawner.
If fish are required for brood stock, this study has shown that only those with
a length greater than 35 cm in standard length should be taken from the wild.
Keywords: reproductive
biology; fecundity; grouper
Author: Retno Andamari, Sari
Budi Moria Sembiring, Gusti Ngurah Permana
Journal Code: jpperikanangg070012
