MATURITY STAGES OF INDIAN OIL-SARDINE, SARDINELLA LONGICEPS VAL., WITH NOTES ON INOiDElJCE OF ATRETIC FOLLICLES IN ADVANCED OVARIES

Abstract

WORKERS engaged in research on the maturity and spawning conditions
offish have prepared different types of maturity scale according to the peculiarities
presented by different fishes studied by them. Except for a few
remarks about the external appearance of ovaries belonging to stages V to
VII by Devanesan (1942), there is no detailed account of the different stages
of maturity for Sardinella longiceps. Nair (1959) has adopted the maturity
scale prepared by the International Coij^cil for the Exploration of the Sea
for investigations on oil-sardine. However, when studies on the maturity
and spawning habits of oil-sardine were taken up by the author, the absence
of a detailed classification was keenly felt and since the International key
was found to be not adequate enough to distinguish the different stages,
it was considered necessary to prepare a detailed scale for the guidance of
workers both in the laboratory and the field so that confusion in the interpretation
and assignment of the stages of maturity can be avoided and a
uniformity in . eporting achieved