Length estimation of Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) using vertebrae
Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus; BFT) is a large (up to 3.3 m in length) pelagicpredator which has been exploited throughout the eastern Atlantic and Mediterraneansince prehistoric times, as attested by its archeological remains. One key insight derivable from these remains is body size, whic...
| Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | article |
| Publication Date: | 2022 |
| Country: | España |
| Institution: | Universidad Autónoma de Madrid |
| Repository: | Biblos-e Archivo. Repositorio Institucional de la UAM |
| Language: | English |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:repositorio.uam.es:10486/719696 |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10486/719696 https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/oa.3092 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Atlantic bluefin tuna osteometry size estimation vertebrae zooarcheology Biología y Biomedicina / Biología |
| Summary: | Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus; BFT) is a large (up to 3.3 m in length) pelagicpredator which has been exploited throughout the eastern Atlantic and Mediterraneansince prehistoric times, as attested by its archeological remains. One key insight derivable from these remains is body size, which can indicate past fishing abilities, theimpact of fishing, and past migration behavior. Despite this, there exists no reliablemethod to estimate the size of BFT found in archeological sites. Here, 13 modern Thunnus spp. skeletons were studied to provide power regression equations thatestimate body length from vertebra dimensions. In modern specimens, the majority of BFT vertebrae can be differentiated by their morphological features, and thus, individual regression equations can be applied for each rank (position in vertebral column). Inan archeological context, poor preservation may limit one's ability to identify rank;hence, “types” of vertebrae were defined, which enable length estimates when rankcannot be determined. At least one vertebra dimension, height, width, or length correlated highly with body length when vertebrae were ranked (R² > 0.97) or identified totypes (R² > 0.98). Whether using rank or type, length estimates appear accurate to approximately ±10%. Finally, the method was applied to a sample of Romanera BFT vertebrae to demonstrate its potential. It is acknowledged that further studies withlarger sample sizes would provide more precision in BFT length estimates |
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