Age and growth of the Mediterranean scallop Pecten jacobaeus (Linnaeus 1758) in the northern Adriatic Sea

Age and growth of the scallop Pecten jacobaeus (Linnaeus 1758) were investigated on specimens collected from a commercial catch in the northern Adriatic during January and February 2003. Shells were aged based on ligament scars and formation of growth rings on the external shell surface, and data were fitted to the von Bertalanffy growth function L-t = L-infinity (1-e(-k(t-t0))). In addition, age and growth were estimated from growth increments using Gulland-Holt plot and relative growth function was constructed. Length of analyzed Pecten jacobaeus ranged from 75.1 to 142.0 mm, while estimated age ranged from 2 to 13 y. With respect to two methods applied, obtained von Bertalanffy equations for height were: H-t = 108.79 (1-e(-0.47t+0.16)) and H-t = 110.08 (1-e(-0.53(t-t0))). The asymptotic shell lengths were estimated to be 127.93 and 127.35 mm, respectively.