Allometry of Mexican hogfish (Bodianus diplotaenia) for predicting the body length of individuals from two pre‐Columbian sites in the Pearl Island archipelago (Panama). (1st March 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Martínez‐Polanco, María Fernanda; Béarez, Philippe; Jiménez‐Acosta, Máximo; Cooke, Richard G.
• Is Part Of: International journal of osteoarchaeology. Volume 32:Number 3(2022)
• Page Start: 669
• Page End: 681
• Publication Date: 2022-03-01
• Subjects: allometry -- ceramic period -- ichthyoarcheology -- labridae -- osteometry -- Panama -- preceramic period -- tropical eastern Pacific; Physical anthropology -- Periodicals; Human remains (Archaeology) -- Periodicals; Paleopathology -- Periodicals; Paléontologie -- Périodiques; Paléopathologie -- Périodiques; Anthropologie physique -- Périodiques; 930.10282
• DOI: 10.1002/oa.3094
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1047-482X

Abstract

Abstract: The Mexican hogfish (Osteichthyes: Labridae, Bodianus diplotaenia Gill, 1862) is widely distributed throughout the tropical eastern Pacific from the Gulf of California to northern Peru, including all oceanic islands. Artisanal fishers occasionally capture it today and its remains are recovered at pre‐Columbian dwelling sites along the Pacific Coast of America. This paper addresses the advantages of using allometry to estimate size ranges of Mexican hogfish in pre‐Hispanic archeological samples from two ancient settlements in the Pearl Island archipelago of Panama: (1) Playa Don Bernardo (PdB), a preceramic site (6.2–5.6 kya), and (2) Bayoneta Island (BY‐10), a ceramic site (~1 kya). For creating the allometric model, a modern collection composed of 39 individuals covering a wide range of sizes and weights was used. All individuals have complete information about their total length (TL) and standard length (SL), which were recorded in millimeters (mm), and their total fresh weight (W) in grams (g). The TL of the sample ranged between 265 and 750 mm, and the SL between 210 and 487 mm. The W ranged between 273 and 3450 g. The most frequent bones (11) and otoliths were selected and 29 measurements were taken. The total length–weight relationship was W = 2E−05 TL 3.0857 with R 2 = 0.984. In general, it was observed that the relationships between the TL and the bone measurements had a strong correlation ( R 2 > 0.95). At PdB, the mean reconstructed length was 289.6 mm (TL), and at BY‐10, it was 283.6 mm (TL). The study of the archeological samples of B. diplotaenia could be used as a point of reference in modern ecological studies and fisheries management particularly in the Pearl Island archipelago.