SPAWNING AND LARVAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE HOGFISH, 

 LACHNOLAIMUS MAXIMUS (PISCES: LABRIDAE) 



Patrick L. Colin 1 



ABSTRACT 



Spawning of the hogfish, Lachnolaimus maxim/us, along a reef-sand interface near the insular shelf 

 edge off southwestern Puerto Rico was observed over a period of 20 months by scuba diving. Eggs 

 were collected and returned to the laboratory for hatching. Male-female ratio was about 1:10. Males 

 patrolled elongate territories, which did not change during the 20 months, during the afternoon. 

 Males initiated spawning by a courtship display using the prolonged dorsal fin spines and other fins. 

 If the female responded, an elaborate process, termed the spawning rush, occurred during which the 

 gametes were released. A male spawned with one female at a time, but often spawned with several 

 females during an afternoon. Peak spawning was from December to April. There was no evidence 

 that spawning was influenced by current speed or direction or by lunar or tidal periodicity. Eggs 

 were planktonic, about 1.2 mm in diameter, lacked visible pigment, and hatched in 23 hours at 

 25.5°C. They were preyed on extensively by yellowtail snappers, Ocyurus chrysurus. Larvae, which 

 survived in the laboratory up to 50 days, lacked a distinct transformation to juveniles but gradually 

 acquired pigment and juvenile form after 13 days. Free-swimming postlarvae formed mucous 

 bubbles at night. 



The hogfish, Lachnolaimus maximus (Wal- 

 baum), is the largest tropical western Atlantic 

 labrid, reaching about 11 kg (Randall and 

 Warmke 1967); adults are conspicuous members 

 of many reef communities. A highly prized food- 

 fish, it is taken incidentally with other fishes, 

 particularly by spear or hook and line. 



It is a protogynous hermaphrodite, but there 

 are no primary males. Color patterns are distinc- 

 tive between sexes. Males, which are more 

 highly pigmented, have a dark reddish brown 

 mask on the head. Also of the same hue are the 

 base and first soft rays of the dorsal fin, the base 

 of the rays in the lunate caudal fin, the pelvic 

 fins, and the leading edge of the anal fin. The 

 color of these darkened areas varies in intensity, 

 depending on the nervous state of the male. The 

 pectoral fins are yellow and there is an elongate 

 spot on each side of the body. Females lack the 

 reddish brown darkening, but possess a black 

 spot about the size of the eye at the posterior base 

 of the dorsal fin. The first three dorsal fin spines 

 are greatly prolonged in males, much more than 

 in females. Males also have filaments on the anal 

 fin, soft dorsal fin, and margins of the caudal fin. 

 The snout is longer in males and has a concave 

 profile. 



'Mid-Pacific Research Laboratory, c/o Hawaii Institute of 

 Marine Biology, P.O. Box 1346, Kaneohe, HI 96744. 



Although various aspects of its biology, such as 

 food habits (Reid 1954; Randall and Warmke 

 1967; Davis 1976) and growth (Davis 1976), have 

 been well documented, little has been published 

 on spawning or early life history. While scuba 

 diving on a shelf-edge coral reef off southwestern 

 Puerto Rico to study reef fish spawning, I en- 

 countered a large spawning population of hog- 

 fish. I was able to observe the courtship display 

 and spawning rush over a 20-mo period from De- 

 cember 1977 to July 1979. I also was able to col- 

 lect large numbers of fertilized eggs, which were 

 returned to the laboratory and hatched. A large 

 number of larvae were kept alive up to 30 d, 

 while smaller numbers were maintained to 50 d. 

 I was able, therefore, to describe and illustrate in 

 some detail the development of larvae from 

 hatching through the juvenile stage. 



METHODS 



Observations of Courtship and Spawning 



The site was visited 154 d during the 20 mo. 

 From December through March, when spawn- 

 ing was high, visits were daily, if possible, but 

 during the summer, visits were usually weekly. 



Males and females were observed both at close 

 range and also from the maximum distances pos- 

 sible. The presence of observers had less effect on 



Manuscript accepted February 1982. 

 FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 80, NO. 4. 1982. 



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