ABSTRACT

Weight-length relationships (WLRs) are frequently used for the development of comparative studies of life history, population dynamics, ecosystem modelling and estimation of the production and biomass of populations among regions. WLRs provide information about growth, wellbeing and fitness of a population in a marine environment. WLRs for four topshells (Phorcus atratus, Phorcus lineatus, Phorcus mariae, Phorcus sauciatus) caught in North-eastern Atlantic Ocean (Azores, Canaries, Cape Verde, Madeira and Mainland Portugal) were established and their relative growth was assessed. The results showed that almost all species exhibited a positive allometric growth. A comparative study on the effect of harvest in the relative growth of P. sauciatus in the archipelago of Madeira showed that all the populations from exploited areas exhibited a negative allometric growth in contrast to the populations from the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) which were predominantly isometric. The present results indicate that the conservation measures established in the protected areas promoted a positive effect in the protected populations and are valuable for establishing a set of monitoring and management measures aiming at the sustainable exploitation and conservation of these species. These results are important to demonstrate the role of MPAs in the conservation of these keystone species in the north eastern Atlantic Ocean rocky shore ecosystems.

摘要

权重关系（WLR）经常用于发展生活史，人口动态，生态系统建模以及区域间人口生产和生物量估计的比较研究。WLR提供有关海洋环境中人口的生长，福祉和健康状况的信息。建立了捕获在东北大西洋（亚速尔群岛，加那利群岛，佛得角，马德拉群岛和葡萄牙大陆）中的四个顶壳（东方明虾（Porcus atratus），东方明虾（Porcus lineatus），南方红点（Phorcus mariae），南方红点（Porcus sauciatus）的WLR。结果表明，几乎所有物种都表现出正的异速生长。收获对紫茎泽兰相对生长影响的比较研究在马德拉群岛上的调查显示，与来自海洋保护区（MPA）的等轴测图种群相比，来自开发区的所有种群均呈现出负等轴测图增长。目前的结果表明，在保护区制定的保护措施对受保护种群产生了积极的影响，对于建立一套旨在可持续开发和保护这些物种的监测和管理措施具有重要意义。这些结果对于证明MPA在保护东北大西洋多岩石海岸生态系统中这些关键物种中的作用非常重要。