SHORT BIGEYE IN WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC 



119 



than be swept north of the range of the aciult. 

 Once north of Cape Hatteras, they would fiiul 

 themselves generally in too deep water to trans- 

 form until they reached the coasts of New Jereey, 

 Ijong Island, or Cape Cod. There, prolonged 

 hfe is probably impossible due to temperature. 

 Likewise, pelagic forms taken in the Gulf of 

 Mexico are small; however, there is much suitable 

 habitat within this semienclosed area to provide 

 proper temperature, depth, and substrate for 

 the prejuveniles to settle in and transform 

 successfully. 



SPAWNING 



TIME OF SPAWNING 



Larvae collected during the Gill operations give 

 some indication of the time of spawning of P. altus. 

 The smallest specimen (2.2 mm.) was taken on 

 July 25 off the east coast of southern Florida at 

 regular station 1 on GUI cruise 3 (table 1 ; figs. 

 6 and 7). Individuals of comparable size were 

 taken at other stations and on subsequent cruises 

 through the middle of September (table 1 ; fig. 7). 

 Such small specimens must have been only a few 

 days old at most, and probably only a day or so. 

 ^\^lile they indicate that the spawning season for 

 this species must extend for at least 2 months, 

 from mid-July to mid-September, 8.6- and 8.7mm. 



specimens taken July 6 off North Carolina at 

 regular station 62 on QUI cruise 7 indicate an even 

 more extended season. To reach this size proba- 

 bly took at least several days, which extends the 

 spawning season back to early Juh' or perhaps 

 late June. Gordon (1960: p. 61) noted the collec- 

 tion of a 62-nHn. total length. individual in Rhode 

 Island in July, indicating a still somewhat earlier 

 initial spawning, at least in some years, for this 

 specimen to have reached this size by even late 

 July (fig. 7). Specimens taken after mid-Septem- 

 ber were 10 mm. or more (table 1 ; fig. 7), indicating 

 completion of the spawning season. Further 

 evidence for a midsummer to late summer or 

 early fall spawning in southern latitudes is seen 

 in table 1. 



Several 20- to 30-mm. specimens were taken in 

 northern latitudes in the late summer and early 

 fall. These were not included in figure 7 because 

 only partial data, such as a month or spread of 

 2 months, were given on labels. There are also 

 numerous references in the literature to late 

 summer and fall collections of small (prejuvenile) 

 specimens in New England and slightly more 

 southern waters and to their apparent arrival there 

 via the Gulf Stream. 



Still further evidence that spawning is completed 

 by mid-September at the latest is given by a 



J J 



MONTH 



FioiRE 7. — Size distribution, hy months, of specimens of Hseudopriacanthiix alius, 75 mm. standard length or less. 



