Relation Between Egg Size, Growth, and Natural Mortality of Larval Fish

Abstract

A set ofdensity-dependent growth and survivorship equations is derived from evidence that the instantaneous death rate in the sea is inversely proportional to particle size. The survivorship equation reproduces several well-known phenomena observed in fish populations. It predicts: 1) that winter and spring spawning species ought to produce larger eggs than summer spawners, 2) that it is advantageous for species that spawn in batches to produce progressively smaller eggs in spring and summer, and 3) that the death rate ofa cohort offish should decrease continuously as the survivors grow and approach the critical size. The biological basis for the observed variation in the size ofpelagic fish eggs and larvae is thought to be due primarily to trophic relations within the pelagic community. It is suggested from what is known ofthe relative abundance and foraging capabilities ofdifferent sized particles, that the survival rates oflarval andjuvenile fish should increase as they grow and occupy a progressively higher position in the food chain.