ABSTRACT
The serial gonads appear in both populations in mid to late fall. The gonadal indices peak in late winter and spawning occurs in mid to late spring. The gonads regress and are no longer visible in the summer months. During the peak of development the gonads comprised 4–10% of the wet weight. The digestive glands reach their peak in mid winter and diminish in size through early summer. The digestive gland comprised 8–13% of the wet weight during the peak of development and 3–4% during the early summer months. The digestive gland cycle was variable from year to year. Spawning occurs in March-April in the population from Tampa Bay and in February in the population from Charlotte Harbor. Only early bipinnaria were found in the plankton. Settlement did occur in both populations. It is not known if these animals have a single spawn with multiple settlements or a multiple spawn. Due to the differences in spawning times between the two populations it is possible that exogenous factors control the reproductive cycle.
