Gonadal cycle of Pseudechinus magellanicus (Philippi, 1857) (Echinoidea: Temnopleuridae) in Golfo Nuevo, Patagonia.

GREGORIO BIGATTI, EZEQUIEL M. MARZINELLI, MAXIMILIANO CLEDÓN & PABLO E. PENCHASZADEH

Munich, Germany

Congreso; 11th International Echinoderm Conference,; 2003

seudechinus magellanicus is a common and abundant sea urchin in the Argentinean coast. Gonad index cycle was studied for this species in Golfo Nuevo, Patagonia, from May 2001 to March 2003. Comparative studies of gonad index and gonad histology were performed for the year 2002. GI reflects gonadal stages, showing two spawning peaks for the studied period. Major spawning occurred in winter and a second spawning event occurred during summer. Male and female individuals spawned synchronically. Male gonads recover faster than females after spawning, suggesting that females tend to invest more time and energy in gametogenesis