Reproductive ecology of Otocinclus vittatus (Regan, 1904) in the Pantanal floodplain, upper Paraguay River basin

Ecologia reprodutiva de Otocinclus vittatus (Regan, 1904) na planície de inundação do Pantanal, bacia do alto rio Paraguai

Abstract

We studied the reproductive biology of Otocinclus vittatus in the southern Pantanal, Brazil. A total of 1066 fishes were analyzed (490 males, 488 females and 88 individuals of undetermined sex), sampled with a rectangular sieve and a seine net from February/2009 to January/2011. Variations in the sex ratio, seasonality in reproduction, fecundity, and size at first maturity were estimated. No variations were detected in the total sex ratio for the study period as a whole; although ratio has varied over time. The gonadosomatic index varied according to the river level, but not according to water temperature and rainfall. The mean fecundity was estimated at 84.1 oocytes, with a positive correlation with standard length. The size at first maturity (L50) estimated was 18.7 mm for females and 20.1 mm for males.

Keywords:
fecundity; life history; sex ratio; size at first maturity