Biological Aspects of Black Scorpionfish, Scorpaena porcus (Linnaeus, 1758) in the Western Coast of Libya

الملخص

Growth, age and reproduction of the black scorpion fish, Scorpaena porcus have been studied. A total of 551 fish were collected from western coast of Libya from March 2012 to April 2013. The total length ranged from 10.2 to 24.8 cm and the total weight ranged from 25.7 to 289.6 gm. The ratio of females to males was 3.8:1. The length weight relationship was negative allometric, W = 0.031 L ^2.84(R² =0.92) for the combined sexes. The age ranged between 1 to 6 years for all fish, whereas the dominant age was 1^st year. The Von Bertalanffy growth equation was fitted on basis of mean length-at-age L_∞= 23.96 cm, k = 1.618year^-1 , and t_o= 0.058 year. The spawning time extend four months,from June to September. This study has presented some important information on S. porcus in the Libyan water that can provide a contribution to other studies such as stocks assessment, as well as giving some biological information.