A Review of the Research on Reproductive Biology of Turkish Marine Fishes

Abstract

The teleost fish stocks distributed in Turkish seas are threatened due to overfishing, pollution, global warming and increasing food competition. There is a need to provide scientific knowledge on reproductive traits of commercial species in order to ensure the sustainability of fish stocks. Parameters related to reproductive biology of fishes such as sex ratio, first sexual maturity length, gonadosomatic index, fecundity and reproductive period are rather effective constituents that should be taken into consideration in the decision making process by fisheries managers. In this study, studies on reproductive biologies of teleost fishes from Turkish waters have been reviewed. A total of 177 studies were compiled that focused on 91 species belonging to 41 families. Reviewed data indicated that existing studies focused on certain fishing areas in the Turkish seas and no information were provided on reproductive biologies of some species. In some species, important parameters such as first sexual maturity length, reproductive period, gonadosomatic index and fecundity were not available.

Keywords

• population
• stock
• reproduction
• sexual maturity
• area
• marine fish