Deepwater snapper ageing

Sea Leucas has been providing assistance to MarAlliance with their deepwater projects. We helped in the design of the survey gear, participated in some of the surveys, worked up the catch, and provided the otolith processing. You can read more about the projects in these briefs (Sharks, Fisheries) and here.

Otoliths are ear bones found in vertebrates. Counting the annual growth rings on the otoliths is a common technique in estimating the age of fish. Processing involves embedding the otoliths in a medium to provide additional support and taking thin slices. These slices can then be viewed with a microscope to count the annuli.