Unveiling population structure in South Pacific albacore: insights from genetics and growth.

ABSTRACT: Albacore (Thunnus alalunga) is a high-value, highly migratory tuna in the South Pacific that is currently assessed and managed as a single stock. Uncertainty it remains over whether southwestern and southeastern individuals constitute the same biological population, with implications for stock assessment and management. Here, we tested for population structure by combining genome-wide resequencing (from which a panel of putatively adaptive SNPs was derived) with analyses of growth (length-weight relationships and growth parameter estimates). Genetic analyses using adaptive markers revealed differentiation between western (WCPO) and eastern Pacific samples. Growth analyses indicated regional differences: western individuals attain larger asymptotic sizes (L∞), whereas eastern individuals ex

SUBMITTER: Lu D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12534426 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature