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Reproductive biology of Cosmasterias lurida (Echinodermata: Asteroidea) an anthropogenically influenced substratum from Golfo Nuevo, Northern Patagonia (Argentina)

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Abstract

The starfish Cosmasterias lurida was sampled from the pier piles of Almirante Storni in the Golfo Nuevo, northern Patagonia, from November 2001 to November 2003. In this anthropogenically modified site there is an unusually abundant food supply of mussels and large aggregations of starfishes. The reproductive cycle was studied by organ indices and histological examination of gonads. The highest gonad index (GI) values were found in the summer (February–March), followed by a drop in GI values, indicating spawning. Histological analyses indicated that gametogenesis takes place from June to January, sexual maturity occurred during the summer and spawning occurred in April. The GI and pyloric caeca index (PCI) tended to have an inverse relationship, but this was only statistically significant in males. However, biochemical analyses of the starfish indicated no transfer of nutrients between pyloric caeca and gonads in either sex. In fact, simultaneous accumulation of carbohydrates was found in the pyloric caeca and gonads of both sexes.

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Acknowledgments

The research presented in this paper was performed as part of the Project N°449 “Reproductive Cycle of Asteroidea in Golfo Nuevo”, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia “San Juan Bosco”. We gratefully acknowledge referees for comments on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro Nacional Patagónico, CONICET, Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina

    Catalina T. Pastor-de-Ward, Tamara Rubilar & Ximena Gonzalez-Pisani

  2. Faculty de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia “San Juan Bosco”, Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina

    María E. Díaz-de-Vivar & Erica Zarate

  3. Instituto de Biología Marina y Pesquera “Almirante Storni”, Universidad Nacional del Comahue, Dirección de Pesca de Rio Negro, San Antonio Oeste, Río Negro, Neuquén, Argentina

    Marina Kroeck & Enrique Morsan

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  1. Catalina T. Pastor-de-Ward
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  2. Tamara Rubilar
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  3. María E. Díaz-de-Vivar
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  4. Ximena Gonzalez-Pisani
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Correspondence to Catalina T. Pastor-de-Ward.

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Communicated by P.W. Sammarco, Chauvin.

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Pastor-de-Ward, C.T., Rubilar, T., Díaz-de-Vivar, M.E. et al. Reproductive biology of Cosmasterias lurida (Echinodermata: Asteroidea) an anthropogenically influenced substratum from Golfo Nuevo, Northern Patagonia (Argentina). Mar Biol 151, 205–217 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-006-0479-x

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