1Seikai National Fisheries Research Institute, Nagasaki 851-2213, 2Japan Sea National Fisheries Research Institute, Niigata 951-8121, 3Kumamoto Prefectural Fisheries Research Center, Kami-amakusa, Kumamoto 860-3603, 4Kagoshima Prefectural Fisheries Technology and Development Center, Ibusuki, Kagoshima 891-0315, Japan
We analyzed the biological characteristics such as growth and maturation of round herring Etrumeus teres in the East China Sea. Von Bertalanffy's growth curve was calculated based on monthly size frequency distributions from 1997 to 2009, and the estimated growth formula was BLm=244.8[1−exp {−0.10(m−0.55)}](r2＝0.92, p<0.01), where BLm is body length at age m (months). Additionally, the estimated formula was supported by the results of scale reading in the adult stage and number of otolith increments in the juvenile stage. Based on histological observations of the gonads, the main spawning period in the East China Sea was from December to June. Combining the results from the growth model and relationships between body length and maturation rate, the first maturation age was estimated to be one year old for both sexes.