Department of Marine Living Resources, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam-530003, Andhra Pradesh, India
*Email id: raopykmlrau@gmail.com
Online published on 11 December, 2013.
The biology of Octopus membranaceus off Visakhapatnam (Lat.17° 41’ N Long. 83° 17’E) was studied. A Scale of four stages of maturity of gonads was identified. The mean length at first maturity was found to be 225 mm total length. Sex ratio indicated that there is a significant difference between males and females in their occurrence. Spawning takes place throughout the year with peak in September. Fecundity varied from 20,432 to 62,324. O. membranaceus was a benthic carnivore, feeding on fishes, shrimps, crabs and squilla in the order of importance. A common regression equation for both the sexes in O. membranaceus was W=9E-5 L2.372
Octopus membranaceus, spawning biology, food and feeding habits, length-weight relationship, Visakhapatnam
