Life history of the slipper lobster Scyllarides astori Holthuis 1960, in the Galapagos islands, Ecuador

Growth of the scyllarid lobster Scyllarides astori was estimated in the Galapagos Marine Reserve by use of tag-recapture data and analysis of length-frequency distributions. Asymptotic carapace lengths (CL _∞), obtained from Powell-Wetherall plots, were 17.53 cm for males and 16.38 cm for females. A 'forced' Gulland-Holt plot gave growth constants (K) of 0.153 yr^-1 for males and 0.162 yr^-1 for females. The narrow size distribution suggests that juveniles occupy a different spatial niche and that adult growth is either very slow or that there is a terminal moult. Currently mainly used for local consumption, there is pressure to allow exportation of S. astori on a large scale to continental Ecuador and abroad. However, its slow growth and low abundance point to the need for a cautious approach and the implementation of clear and enforceable regulations in order to ensure the biological and economical sustainability of the population.