Fecundity, oogenesis, and ovulation pattern of southern African Lycoteuthis lorigera (Steenstrup, 1875).

Hoving, Henk-Jan T. , Laptikhovsky, V. V., Lipinski, M. R. and Jürgens, E. (2014) Fecundity, oogenesis, and ovulation pattern of southern African Lycoteuthis lorigera (Steenstrup, 1875). Hydrobiologia, 725 (1). pp. 23-32. DOI 10.1007/s10750-013-1586-6.

[thumbnail of art_10.1007_s10750-013-1586-6.pdf] Text
art_10.1007_s10750-013-1586-6.pdf - Published Version
Restricted to Registered users only

Download (408kB) | Contact

Supplementary data:

Abstract

Lycoteuthis lorigera is among the most abundant mesopelagic squid on the continental slope of the south Atlantic. It is the dominant prey in some commercially harvested groundfish. Despite its abundance and importance in the mesopelagic foodweb, its general biology is poorly known. In this study, the spawning pattern and fecundity of L. lorigera from southern African waters were investigated. Both histological examination and length frequency analysis of ovaries in various stages of development revealed that the ovulation pattern of L. lorigera is asynchronous, which indicates a spawning strategy where batches of eggs are spawned repeatedly over time. More specifically, ovulation is group synchronous, where distinct batches of 1,200–2,400 eggs ripen in the ovary and accumulate in the oviducts. The potential fecundity was estimated to be 20,000–50,000 in immature females (n = 6) and 8,000–25,000 in mature females (n = 21). The number of ripe eggs in the oviducts suggests that batches of spawned egg masses contain between 1,000 and 4,000 eggs. The reproductive strategy of L. lorigera is discussed and compared to the reproductive strategies of oceanic squid inhabiting the continental slope of southern Africa.

Document Type: Article
Keywords: Cephalopoda; Spawning; Reproduction; Mesopelagic; South Africa; Lycoteuthis lorigera
Refereed: Yes
Open Access Journal?: No
Publisher: Springer
Date Deposited: 02 Dec 2014 10:54
Last Modified: 02 Dec 2014 10:54
URI: https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/26103

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item