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Reproductive biology of the serpulid Ficopomatus (Mercierella) enigmaticus in the Thames Estuary, S.E. England

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

D. R. Dixon
D. R. Dixon
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Bedford College, University of London, Regent's Park, London
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Extract

Details of the gross cellular changes taking place in the gonadial tissues and coelom of Ficopomatus during the annual reproductive cycle are presented. There is no true gonad in either sex; instead, germ cell precursors are produced by divisions of a germinal epithelium associated with the ring blood vessels in the intersegmental septa.

Segments producing gametes do not all develop simultaneously; the posterior segments are generally at a more advanced stage of sexual maturity. The later stages in gamete development take place free in the coelom, where nourishment is supplied presumably by the mobilization of materials formerly stored in tissues surrounding the gut.

Spawning commences in June and continues through to October, with peak activity coinciding with the period of high water temperature in August and early September. The adult population comprises males, females, and protandrous hermaphrodites which in the male phase become sexually mature in advance of the rest of the population, and as females later on. These transitional individuals are thought to contribute a negligible amount to the effective reproductive output in those populations living where there is marked temporal constraint on the period of reproduction.

The different reproductive capacities of temperate and tropical Ficopomatus are considered.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 61 , Issue 3 , August 1981 , pp. 805 - 815
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1981

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