Age, growth and reproduction of the Shabut Barbus grypus (Cyprinidae) in Atatürk Dam Lake (Euphrates River),Turkey
Age, growth and reproduction of 243 shabut Barbus grypus Heckel, 1843 in Atatürk Dam Lake in Turkey were studied from June 2004 to July 2005. The population was composed of 13 age classes. Age groups, 4-6 for females and 2-4 for males, were dominant. The total length and weight of the individuals ranged from 145 to 960 mm in length and from 40 g to 11 kg respectively. The regression model fitted to the relation between length (FL) and weight (W) of fish was Log W = -4.6112 + 2.8835 Log FL (r2 = 0.989) for females, and Log W = -4.8607 + 2.9679 Log FL (r2= 0.990) for males. The von Bertalanffy growth equations for females and males were found as Lt = 134.65 [1 – e-0.10038 (t + 1.85731)] for females and Lt = 106.77 [1 – e-0.13649 (t + 1.095)] for males. The total observed sex ratio was: 1.34 (females/males). The spawning period extended from May to July. Fecundity ranged from 16,000 to 235,784.