Characterisation of phenotypic stock diversity of the crescent perch, Terapon jarbua (Forsskål, 1775) along the Indian coast using morphology and otolith shape analysis

Crescent Perch, Terapon jarbua is one of the important food cum marine ornamental fish in India. The present study deals with the delineation of T. jarbua stocks along the Indian coast using the morphology of fish and otolith shape analysis. A total of 609 fish samples were collected from six major fishing harbours representing the Indian coast from February to May 2022. The conventional morphometry, truss network analysis and otolith shape indices revealed the morphological divergence for the fish among the stocks. However, meristic traits could not show the variations among the different stocks. The morphometric and otolith shape variability for the species revealed the existence of different phenotypic stocks along the Indian coast, which might be due to the ability of the T. jarbua to adapt to different environmental conditions. The study highlights the need for separate biological and stock assessment studies for developing effective management strategies.