Length-Weight Relationships

Rainer Froese
 How to Measure Size in Fishes
• Length as a proxy for weight
• Total length (TL)
• Standard length (SL)
• Fork length (FL)
• Other length measurements
• Length as proxy for size overestimates
weight in eels, underestimates in puffers
and boxfishes
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 Relationship Between
Weight and Length
W = a * Lb
with weight W in grams and length L in cm

For parameter estimation use linear regression of data

transformed to base 10 logarithms
log W = log a + b * log L

Plot data to detect and exclude outliers, and to check for

growth stanzas

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 LWR Plot I
14000

12000

10000

8000
Weight (g)

6000

4000

2000

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Length (cm )

Weight-length data for Cod taken in 1903 by steam trawlers from Moray Firth and Aberdeen Bay.
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Data were lumped by 0.5 cm length class and thus one point may represent 1-12 specimens.
 LWR Plot II
100000

10000

1000

W = 0.00622 * L3.108
Weight (g)

100

10

0.1
1 10 100 1000
Length (cm )

Double-logarithmic plot of the data in LWR Plot I. The overall regression line is W = 0.00622 * L3.108, with
n = 468, r2 = 0.9995, 95% CL of a = 0.00608 – 0.00637, 95% CL of b = 3.101 – 3.114. Note that the mid-
length of length classes was used such as 10.25 cm for the length class 10 - 10.49 cm and the number
of specimens per length class (1 - 12) was used a frequency variable in the linear regression. 5
 Growth Stanzas
1000

100
W = 0.00307 * L3.28

10
Weight (g)

W = 0.00130 * L3.69
0.1

0.01
1 10 100
Length (cm)

Double-logarithmic plot of weight vs. length for Clupea harengus, based on data in Fulton (1904), showing
two growth stanzas and an inflection point at about 8 cm. For the first growth stanza: n = 5 (92), r2 = 0.9984,
95% CL of a = 0.00125 – 0.00134, 95% CL of b = 3.66 – 3.72. For the second growth stanza: n = 46(400),
r2 = 0.9996, 95% CL of a = 0.00301 – 0.00312, 95% CL of b = 3.28 – 3.29. 6
 How to Report LWR
W = 0.0121 * L3.03
r2 = 0.994
n = 54
sex = mixed
Length range = 30 -72 cm TL
95% CL a = 0.0101 – 0.0148
95% CL b = 2.99 – 3.09
Species: Gadus morhua Linnaeus, 1758
Locality: Kiel Bight, Germany
Gear: Bottom trawl with 6 cm mesh size.
Sampling duration: Mid April to mid May, 2005
Remarks: Beginning of spawning season.

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 Fulton’s Condition Factor
K = 100 * W / L3

Used to compare ‘fatness’ or condition of specimens of similar

size, e.g. to detect differences between sexes, seasons or
localities.

Example: Condition of a specimen of 10 grams weight and

10 cm length
1 = 100 * 10 / 1000

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 Condition as a Function of Size and Season
0.3

0.2
Condition factor (log K)

0.1

Fall b = 2.96
0.0 Winter b = 2.91

Summer b = 2.77
-0.1
Spring b = 2.60

-0.2
0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7
Length (log; cm)

Log-log plot of condition vs. length of Comber Serranus cabrilla taken in spring, summer, fall and
winter, respectively, in the Aegean Sea. The dotted line shows the condition factors associated
with geometric mean a and mean b across all available LWRs for this species. 9
 Understanding b
300

200
Frequency (n)

100

0
2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0
b

Frequency distribution of mean exponent b based on 3,929 records for 1,773 species, with
median = 3.025, 95% CL = 3.011 – 3.036, 5th percentile = 2.65 and 95th percentile = 3.39,
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minimum = 1.96, maximum = 3.94; the normal distribution line is overlaid.
 b as Function of Size Range
1.5

1.0
Residuals of b

0.5

0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0
Fraction of maximum length

Absolute residuals of b=3.0 plotted over the length range used for establishing the weight-length
relationship. The length range is expressed as fraction of the maximum length known for the
species. A robust regression analysis of absolute residuals vs. fraction of maximum length resulted
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in n = 2,800, r = 0.0065, slope = -0.0505, 95% CL -0.0735 – -0.0274.
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 Mean b as a Function of Studies
1.2

1.0

0.8
Residuals of b

0.6

0.4

0.2

0.0
1 10 100
Number of L-W estimates

Absolute residuals of mean b per species from b = 3.0, plotted over the respective number of
weight-length estimates contributing to mean b, for 1,773 species. The two outliers with about
10 weight-length estimates belong to species with truly allometric growth. 12
 Understanding b
• b=3
Isometric growth and small specimens have
same condition as large specimens. Default.
• b << 3
Negative allometric growth or small specimens
in better condition than large ones.
• b >> 3
Positive allometric growth or large specimens in
better condition than small ones.
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 Understanding a
If b ~ 3 then a is a form-factor with
a = 0.001 -> eel-like (eel)
a = 0.01 -> fusiform (cod, tunas)
a = 0.1 -> spherical (puffers, boxfish)

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 Understanding a
300

200
Frequency (n)

100

0
-4.0 -3.5 -3.0 -2.5 -2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5
log a
Frequency distribution of mean log a based on 3,929 records for 1,773 species, with
median a = 0.01184, 95% CL = 0.0111 – 0.0123, 5th percentile = 0.00143,
95th percentile = 0.0451, minimum = 0.0001, and maximum = 0.273. 15
 Interdependence of a and b
100000

10000

1000

W = 0.00622 * L3.108
Weight (g)

100

10

0.1
1 10 100 1000
Length (cm )

Any increase in slope b will decrease intercept a, and vice-versa.

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 log a vs. b Plot
-1.0

-1.5
log a

-2.0

-2.5

-3.0
2.5 2.7 2.9 3.1 3.3
b

Plot of log a over b for 25 length-weight relationships of Oncorhynchus gilae. The black dot
was identified as outlier (see text) by robust regression analysis (robust weight = 0.000).
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 Multi-species comparison
-0.5
o short & deep
+ fusiform
-1.0 - elongated
— eel-like

-1.5

-2.0
log a

-2.5

-3.0

-3.5

-4.0

negative allometric isometric positive allometric

-4.5
1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5
b

Scatter plot of mean log a (TL) over mean b for 1,232 species with body shape information.
Areas of negative allometric, isometric and positive allometric change in body weight relative to
body length are indicated. The regression line is based on robust regression analysis for 18
fusiform Species.
 More Information
Froese, R., 2006. Cube law, condition factor, and weight-
length relationships: history, meta-analysis and
recommendations. Journal of Applied Ichthyology
22(4):241-253

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