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Ovarian structure and mode of egg production in the seaweed pipefish Syngnathus schlegeli (Syngnathidae)

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Abstract

This study investigated ovarian structure and mode of egg production in the seaweed pipefish, Syngnathus schlegeli. The ovary had a rolled sheet-like structure where developing follicles were arranged serially in sequence according to their development, with a single germinal ridge running along the edge of the sheet. Oocytes of various developmental stages were concomitantly present in the ovary, and the number of mature eggs increased continuously over time, indicating that egg production is asynchronous. This would be a physiological basis for multiple spawning within a short time span associated with polygamy in this fish.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to S. Iwasaki for technical support in field and laboratory work. We thank K. Hidaka, H. Issiki, Y. Kamimura, H. Kinoshita, T. Morita, Y. Nakata, E. Sawai, J. Shoji, and A. Tada for their help in collecting fish. We also thank S. Watanabe for technical advice for rearing fish, J. Shibata for advice on statistical analyses, and anonymous reviewers for helpful comments. This research was supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science for Young Scientists to A.S.

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Author notes

  1. Atsushi Sogabe

    Present address: Research Center for Marine Biology, Asamushi, Tohoku University, 9 Sakamoto, Asamushi, Aomori, 039-3501, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Biosphere Science, Hiroshima University, 1-4-4 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, 739-8528, Japan

    Atsushi Sogabe

  2. Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Ehime University, 2-5 Bunkyo-cho, Matsuyama, 790-8577, Japan

    Hiromi Takata

  3. Sesoko Station, Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, 3422 Sesoko, Motobu, Okinawa, 905-0227, Japan

    Yasuhisa Kobayashi

Authors
  1. Atsushi Sogabe
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  2. Hiromi Takata
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  3. Yasuhisa Kobayashi
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Correspondence to Atsushi Sogabe.

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Sogabe, A., Takata, H. & Kobayashi, Y. Ovarian structure and mode of egg production in the seaweed pipefish Syngnathus schlegeli (Syngnathidae). Ichthyol Res 60, 85–88 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-012-0313-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-012-0313-z

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