Title: Evaluation of Length-Based Stock Assessment Approaches: A Preliminary Assessment of the Status of Pagellus bellotti and Galeoides decadactylus in Sierra Leone Coastal Waters.

The length-based spawning potential ratio (LBSPR) and mean length mortality estimator (MLZ) are widely used methods for assessing the status of data-poor fisheries management. The aim of this study was to conduct a preliminary assessment of the status of Pagellus bellotti and Galeoides decadactylus in Sierra Leone’s coastal waters using LBSPR and MLZ. The length-frequency data were collected from the industrial fleets from 2018 to 2020. The estimated average spawning potential ratio (SPR) from the deterministic life-history parameters was 1.9% and 1.7% for P. bellotti and G. decadactylus respectively, while the average SPR from stochastic for P. bellotti and G. decadactylus were 1.7% and 2%, respectively. The SPR of both stocks was far below the limit reference point (SPR=20%), indicating that the recruitment of these stocks is threatened. The length at which 50% of the fish were selected was less than the length at which 50% of the stock had matured. This translates to high fishing pressure (F/M > 1) for both species. The MLZ average relative fishing mortality (F/M) obtained for P. bellotti and G. decadactylus were 3.56 and 3.26, respectively. These values are greater than one, indicating that the stocks are overfished. The LBSPR model captures the general trends in fishing mortality and spawning stock biomass of the Icelandic cod stock assessment model with slight variation. This shows that LBSPR is a cost-effective tool for analysing data-limited stocks.