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Distribution, Abundance and Size Composition of Mullet Populations in the Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

P. N. Claridge
Affiliation:
N.E.R.C. Institute for Marine Environmental Research, Prospect Place, The Hoe, Plymouth PL1 3DH
I. C. Potter
Affiliation:
School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150

Extract

The following three species of grey mullet (Mugilidae) are recorded by Wheeler (1978) for the waters of north-western Europe: thick-lipped mullet, Chelon labrosus (Risso, 1826); thin-lipped mullet, Liza ramada (Risso, 1826) and golden mullet, Liza aurata (Risso, 1810). Liza ramada was obtained in relatively large numbers during the course of extensive sampling of the material collected on the intake screens of power stations in the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary (for details of other studies see e.g. Claridge & Gardner, 1977, 1978; Titmus, Claridge & Potter, 1978; Abou-Seedo & Potter, 1979; Claridge & Potter, 1983, 1984). Since there is apparently no detailed information on the biology of the thin-lipped mullet in the estuaries of north-western Europe based on regular frequent collections, the power station material was used to provide data on seasonal and annual abundance, size composition, growth and lip depth of this species in the Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel. Comparisons have been made between these data and those obtained for C. labrosus from the same environments and more particularly from outside the area at Pembroke where much larger collections of this latter species were taken.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1985

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