Quantitative stock assessments for Mississippi’s Spotted Seatrout use length-, age-, and sex-composition data from fishery-independent sources as proxies to estimate biostatistical characteristics of fisheries harvests due to lack of sector-specific data. In Chapter 2, I examined the age, length, and sex composition of Spotted Seatrout from three fishery-dependent sectors. Between April and December 2023, I collected 210 fish (n = 19, 124, and 67 from private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively). The length ranged between 373-535mm, 285-523mm, and 345-568mm TL, with mean ± SD lengths of 453 ± 51mm, 393 ± 57mm, and 442 ± 53mm TL, respectively. Age ranged from 1-5yrs in private and charter and 2-5yrs in commercial, and predominantly 1 and 3yrs in private, 2yrs in charter, and 3yrs in commercial. Mostly, females were captured, with female-to-male sex ratios of 3.7:1, 5.7:1, and 1.9:1 in private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively. Results highlighted the need for sector-specific age, length, and sex composition in stock assessments. Additionally, I investigated the use of fish carcasses, which may introduce biases such as shrinkage on length and mass loss. In Chapter 3, I examined the impact of freezing and thawing on carcasses collected from April to October 2023. Percent changes in mm TL, mm SL, and g W had means of -0.1%, -0.63%, and -5.42%, respectively. Results indicated that mm TL was unaffected by freezing, while mm SL and g W were significantly affected, suggesting caution in using frozen fish data in stock assessments.
","abstract_html":"<p>Quantitative stock assessments for Mississippi’s Spotted Seatrout use length-, age-, and sex-composition data from fishery-independent sources as proxies to estimate biostatistical characteristics of fisheries harvests due to lack of sector-specific data. In Chapter 2, I examined the age, length, and sex composition of Spotted Seatrout from three fishery-dependent sectors. Between April and December 2023, I collected 210 fish (n = 19, 124, and 67 from private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively). The length ranged between 373-535mm, 285-523mm, and 345-568mm TL, with mean ± SD lengths of 453 ± 51mm, 393 ± 57mm, and 442 ± 53mm TL, respectively. Age ranged from 1-5yrs in private and charter and 2-5yrs in commercial, and predominantly 1 and 3yrs in private, 2yrs in charter, and 3yrs in commercial. Mostly, females were captured, with female-to-male sex ratios of 3.7:1, 5.7:1, and 1.9:1 in private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively. Results highlighted the need for sector-specific age, length, and sex composition in stock assessments. Additionally, I investigated the use of fish carcasses, which may introduce biases such as shrinkage on length and mass loss. In Chapter 3, I examined the impact of freezing and thawing on carcasses collected from April to October 2023. Percent changes in mm TL, mm SL, and g W had means of -0.1%, -0.63%, and -5.42%, respectively. Results indicated that mm TL was unaffected by freezing, while mm SL and g W were significantly affected, suggesting caution in using frozen fish data in stock assessments.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Osho-Abdulgafar, Nimah Folake"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Robert Leaf","Dr. Mark Peterson","Dr. Wei Wu"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-08-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2024-08-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:40Z","subjects":["Spotted Seatrout","Commercial","Charter Fleet","Private Boat","Carcass","Freezing Effect","Marine Biology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1044","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Robert Leaf","Dr. Mark Peterson","Dr. Wei Wu"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Osho-Abdulgafar, Nimah Folake"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-09-13T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Spotted Seatrout","Commercial","Charter Fleet","Private Boat","Carcass","Freezing Effect","Marine Biology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1044"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Quantitative stock assessments for Mississippi’s Spotted Seatrout use length-, age-, and sex-composition data from fishery-independent sources as proxies to estimate biostatistical characteristics of fisheries harvests due to lack of sector-specific data. In Chapter 2, I examined the age, length, and sex composition of Spotted Seatrout from three fishery-dependent sectors. Between April and December 2023, I collected 210 fish (n = 19, 124, and 67 from private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively). The length ranged between 373-535mm, 285-523mm, and 345-568mm TL, with mean ± SD lengths of 453 ± 51mm, 393 ± 57mm, and 442 ± 53mm TL, respectively. Age ranged from 1-5yrs in private and charter and 2-5yrs in commercial, and predominantly 1 and 3yrs in private, 2yrs in charter, and 3yrs in commercial. Mostly, females were captured, with female-to-male sex ratios of 3.7:1, 5.7:1, and 1.9:1 in private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively. Results highlighted the need for sector-specific age, length, and sex composition in stock assessments. Additionally, I investigated the use of fish carcasses, which may introduce biases such as shrinkage on length and mass loss. In Chapter 3, I examined the impact of freezing and thawing on carcasses collected from April to October 2023. Percent changes in mm TL, mm SL, and g W had means of -0.1%, -0.63%, and -5.42%, respectively. Results indicated that mm TL was unaffected by freezing, while mm SL and g W were significantly affected, suggesting caution in using frozen fish data in stock assessments.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Biometric Assessment of Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) from Recreational and Commercial Fisheries in Mississippi, USA"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Robert Leaf","Dr. Mark Peterson","Dr. Wei Wu"],"dc:creator":["Osho-Abdulgafar, Nimah Folake"],"dc:date.available":["2024-09-13T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Quantitative stock assessments for Mississippi’s Spotted Seatrout use length-, age-, and sex-composition data from fishery-independent sources as proxies to estimate biostatistical characteristics of fisheries harvests due to lack of sector-specific data. In Chapter 2, I examined the age, length, and sex composition of Spotted Seatrout from three fishery-dependent sectors. Between April and December 2023, I collected 210 fish (n = 19, 124, and 67 from private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively). The length ranged between 373-535mm, 285-523mm, and 345-568mm TL, with mean ± SD lengths of 453 ± 51mm, 393 ± 57mm, and 442 ± 53mm TL, respectively. Age ranged from 1-5yrs in private and charter and 2-5yrs in commercial, and predominantly 1 and 3yrs in private, 2yrs in charter, and 3yrs in commercial. Mostly, females were captured, with female-to-male sex ratios of 3.7:1, 5.7:1, and 1.9:1 in private, charter, and commercial sectors, respectively. Results highlighted the need for sector-specific age, length, and sex composition in stock assessments. Additionally, I investigated the use of fish carcasses, which may introduce biases such as shrinkage on length and mass loss. In Chapter 3, I examined the impact of freezing and thawing on carcasses collected from April to October 2023. Percent changes in mm TL, mm SL, and g W had means of -0.1%, -0.63%, and -5.42%, respectively. Results indicated that mm TL was unaffected by freezing, while mm SL and g W were significantly affected, suggesting caution in using frozen fish data in stock assessments.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1044"],"dc:subject":["Spotted Seatrout","Commercial","Charter Fleet","Private Boat","Carcass","Freezing Effect","Marine Biology"],"dc:title":["Biometric Assessment of Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) from Recreational and Commercial Fisheries in Mississippi, USA"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:40Z"}