Investigation of relationship between Morphometric and Meristic characteristics of Mugil cephalus (striped mullet) collected from the coastline of Susa, Libya.

Abstract

This research examined the interrelations among several morphometric and meristic traits of the striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) sourced from the Susa coastline in Libya. A total of 20 specimens were meticulously analyzed, with measurements taken for parameters including total weight, total length, standard length, body depth, body width, head length, eye diameter, and various fin dimensions. The descriptive statistical analysis indicated that total weight exhibited the highest mean value, whereas eye diameter recorded the lowest. Correlation analysis revealed significant positive associations between body depth and standard length, body depth and total weight, body width and preorbital length, as well as between standard length and total weight, pelvic fin length, and body width. Conversely, certain relationships, such as those between preorbital length and postorbital length, and between preorbital length and second dorsal fin length, were determined to be minimal and statistically insignificant.