Reproductive biology of the deep-sea holothurians Laetmogone violacea and Benthogone rosea (Elasipoda: Holothurioidea)

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Abstract
Specimens were examined from a number of stations (960 to 2120 m depth) in the Porcupine Seabight and Rockall Trough, northeast Atlantic Ocean. Both species are gonochoric and show an equal division of the sexes. The ovary of L. violacea is a compact nodose structure containing eggs up to 400 .mu.m diameter. The testis is highly digitate, with the wall of each tubule containing numerous infoldings lined with spermatogonia and spermatocytes; spermatozoa reach a maximum size of 2 .mu.m (head diameter). The ovary of B. rosea consists of thin-walled nodose tubules through which the large egg of 750 .mu.m diameter can be clearly seen. The testis of B. rosea is a small digitate structure, the walls of which lack the infoldings found in L. violacea; spermatozoa have a head diameter of 5 to 7 .mu.m. In neither species is there any evidence for reproductive seasonality.