Biological observations of Salmostoma novacula fishery of a protected reservoir in India

Feeding and breeding biology of a prominent indigenous fishery of Peechi Reservoir(protected reservoir) was assessed using 300 specimens in this study. Catch compositionstudies identified Salmostoma sp. as the major species contributing to the reservoir fishery.With the help of mitochondrial CO1 gene, the species was identified as Salmostomanovacula. The feeding biology of the fishes was studied using index of preponderance(IOP), gastro-somatic index (GaSI) and relative gut length (RGL). IOP of S. novacula revealedthat zooplankton dominated the gut of the species to the tune of nearly 70.82%. The meanRGL and GaSI of S. novacula was estimated at 1.42 (1.42±0.25) and 4.22 respectively. Theindices used for reproductive study were size at first maturity, sex ratio, gonado-somaticindices and fecundity. The size at first maturity for S. novacula was found to be 13.0 cm. Thesex ratio and relative fecundity were estimated at 1.2:1.0 and 8500-8833 nos. per gram bodyweight of fish. The study indicated that the fishes mature during March to August and exhibitspawning activity in September. The paper emphasises a need for enforcing minimum legalsize and restricted monsoon fishing for sustained fisheries in this reservoir. Keywords:CO1 gene, Feeding biology, Fisheries management,Reproductive biology, Salmostoma novacula