Semilunar spawning cycle of the humbug damselfish Dascyllus aruanus

Citation
N. Mizushima et al., Semilunar spawning cycle of the humbug damselfish Dascyllus aruanus, J ETHOL, 18(2), 2000, pp. 105-108
Citations number
16
Categorie Soggetti
Animal Sciences
Journal title
JOURNAL OF ETHOLOGY
ISSN journal
02890771 → ACNP
Volume
18
Issue
2
Year of publication
2000
Pages
105 - 108
Database
ISI
SICI code
0289-0771(2000)18:2<105:SSCOTH>2.0.ZU;2-V
Abstract
A very distinct semilunar spawning cycle was found in a population of the d amselfish Dascyllus aruanus on the coral reefs of Sesoko Island, Okinawa. S pawning occurred from June to September, only in the early morning, during a period of 2-4 days immediately before or around the time of the new and f ull moon. Males cared for the eggs deposited on the substrate for 2.5 days until hatching. Hatching occurred just after sunset, i.e., at the high tide of spring tide; the strong ebb current then would rapidly disperse the new ly hatched larvae offshore. Females tended to synchronize spawning in a mal e's nest, also because multiple clutches in a nest would be more likely to survive until hatching. Thus, the distinct semilunar spawning cycle may fav or females in reducing mortality of both eggs and larvae.