Reproductive Biology of the Bobtail Squid Rossia macrosoma (Cephalopoda: Sepiolidea) from the Eastern Mediterranean

Abstract

Rossia macrosoma was investigated based on material collected from the eastern Mediterranean Sea, to determine potential fecundity (PF), reproductive strategies and size at maturity. The female potential fecundity ranged between 126 and 931, while the value was 15 to 103 for male spermatophores. Egg sizes varied from 0.2 to 10.0 mm, and spermatophore lengths ranged from 12.3 to 18.8 mm. Animals became mature at smaller sizes than those from the western Mediterranean, thus, their maximum sizes were smaller either. According to egg diameter distributions in gonads, R. macrosoma has asynchronous ovary maturation, spawning more than once. Therefore, R. macrosoma is an intermittent spawner similar to other sepiolid species.