The population structure and reproductive biology of deep-water continental margin Cynoglossidae is poorly known. Here, we focused on two highly abundant species of the upper slope of the NW Mediterranean Sea, Symphurus nigrescens and S. ligulatus. Megafaunal sampling of 37 hauls was conducted between April 2003 and May 2004 in the Blanes canyon and the adjacent open slope between 300–1500 m depth. The differential bathymetric distribution between the two species was surveyed by standardizing catch data per unit of swept surface and by pooling resulting densities by 100 m depth interval. Females of both species were classified into a five-stage maturity scale according to their external appearance and their gonads dissected for histological analysis. The analysis of the species' bathymetric distribution revealed a differential and only partial overlap. In both species, an increase in size with depth was observed coinciding with the dominance of females in deeper depth strata. The shallower species, S. nigrescens showed a marked spawning period with a peak in summer. In contrast, the deeper-living species, S. ligulatus, presented a longer spawning period ranging from spring to autumn. Moreover, histological examination demonstrated that the ovaries of both species had an asynchronous organization. Present results on spatial-temporal size frequency distribution, spawning temporality and oocyte size are discussed assuming interspecific competition and the different environmental conditions related to their bathymetric distribution.

Seasonal distribution and abundance of anchovy eggs were analysed during three scientific cruises carried out from summer 2006 to summer 2007 in the Boka Kotorska Bay, and one cruise in July 2008 in the open waters of the south-eastern Adriatic Sea. Daily egg production method (DEPM) was applied for the first time for estimation of the anchovy spawning stock biomass in the south-eastern Adriatic Sea. The daily egg production was 13–581 eggs day−1 within the bay, and 42–110 eggs day−1 in the open waters. Anchovy egg abundance was highest in spring inside the Bay of Kotor (one of the innermost and eutrophic sub-bays of the Boka Kotorska Bay), which indicates that the conditions for anchovy spawning are very favourable in this part of the Adriatic Sea, even when temperatures are below the optimum. This study has shown that the Boka Kotorska Bay is an area of very intensive spawning of anchovy, and that small-size anchovies live and spawn in the bay, and after spawning migrate towards open waters. The length at which 50% of anchovy were mature (L50) was calculated as 9.28 for females and 9.02 for males. Spawning stock biomass was at a stable level during the period of investigation.

The age and growth parameters of grey triggerfish, Balistes capriscus from the Gulf of Gabès, southern Tunisia, Mediterranean Sea, were estimated from the first dorsal spine sections of 463 specimens (206 males and 257 females), whose fork length was between 139 and 427 mm and the total weight ranged from 90.04 to 1967.41 g. The monthly percentage of specimens having a terminal translucent zone has indicated that the growth zone is formed once a year, during the cold season (February). The von Bertalanffy growth equations were: FL = 420.7 [1 − e−0.233(t + 0.123)] and FL = 417.0 [1 − e−0.238(t + 0.074)], for males and females, respectively. The longevity estimated was 13 years old for both sexes. The instantaneous mortality rates were estimated to 0.23 for males and 0.24 for females. The weight–length relationships of the grey triggerfish were Wt = 21.510−3 LF3.046 and Wt = 41.010−3 LF2.835, for males and females, respectively.