Age and growth characteristic ofMegalobrama skolkovii in Beijiang River

The age and growth of Megalobrama skolkovii were evaluated in Beijiang River using scales of 326 specimens collected in September 2011.The estimated ages ranged between 2 to 7 years old,the dominated age ranged from 3 to 5 years old(87.42%),the dominated body length was from 190 to 270 mm(44.79%),the dominated body weight was from 100 to 800 g(70.25%).The body length-scale radius relationship is:(Female) L=44.281R+16.927;(Male) L=41.483R+23.732.The body length-weight relationship were:(Female) W=4×10-5L2.9502,(Male) W=5×10-5L2.8717,belongs to be isometric growth.The Von Bertalanffy growth equations were:(Female)Lt=480.52(1-e-0.2343(t+0.2395)),(Male)Lt=462.05(1-e-0.2351(t+0.3062));(Female)Wt=3052.92(1-e-0.2343(t+0.2395))2.9502,(Male)Wt=2400.78(1-e-0.2351(t+0.3062))2.8717.The result showed that female fish appeared to growth at a faster rate and had longer life-spans than male fish.For the purpose of protecting the population of M.skolkovii and sustainable utilization,we suggest only fish larger than 300 mm(700 g) should be harvested.