Age and growth of the striped mullet, Mugil platanus (Actinopterygii, Mugilidae), in a southwestern Atlantic coastal lagoon (37°32'S-57°19'W): a proposal for a life-history model

Species of Mugilidae are an important economic resource supporting several small communities in Argentina and Brazil through fishing. The growth parameters of the von Bertalanffy model, age limit (t(0.95)) and natural mortality (M) for the striped mullet (Mugil platanus) Gunther, 1880, in the Mar Chiquita coastal lagoon (37 degrees 32'S-57 degrees 19'W) were estimated. These results constitute the first estimated values for the species as: L-infinity (cm) = 563.82; K (years(-1)) = 0.30; t(0) (years) = -0.057 (age groups 1-8); t(0.95) = 10.07 years and M = 0.30. Moreover, a hypothetical model is proposed for the life history of the adult stock of M. platanus from the Mar Chiquita coastal lagoon based on CPUE data, environmental parameters, ovarian maturity stages, gonadosomatic indexes, the allometric growth coefficient b and deposition of hyaline or opaque rings in the otholiths. Mugil platanus is therefore regarded as a species of moderate to rapid growth rate, with a relatively low longevity and a high natural mortality rate, compared to other species of Mugilidae.