| Description of life cycle and mating behavior |
During copulation, female and male mate in a head-to-head position. The male transfers its spermatophores to the female via the hectocotylus, which attaches to the surface of the female's buccal membrane. Spawning occurs throughout the year, in tropical waters during summer and early autumn, and lasts for 2-3 months. During spawning, females first produce a secretion of the nidamental glands like that of the ommastrephid Todarodespacificus. The secretion enters the water, and swells, and the female molds it into a cylinder. After that, the oviductal glands start to work, forming 2 mucous threads, each with 1 row of eggs. In the mantle cavity both threads fuse and develop into a single cord containing a double row of eggs. This cord exits into the water through the funnel, and the eggs are fertilized with spermatozoa from seminal receptacles located in the female's buccal membrane. The female then winds the cord of eggs onto the cylinder. As a result, the structure of the egg mass is uniform, as observed in natural egg masses of T. rhombus (Ref. 95878).
|