Life Cycle
The sea bass spawns when it is mature, at 190 mm (7.5 in), in middle of May to end of June. The buoyant eggs are 0.95 mm (0.03 in) in diameter, and their development time is 1.6 days at 23 °C (74 °F). The maximum size of a sea bass is 500 mm (20 in), weighing 4.3 kg (9.5 lb).
It appears off New Jersey in the first weeks of May, withdrawing in late October or early November, and wintering offshore at 55 to 130 m (180 to 426 ft) at temperatures above 8 °C (46 °F). In summer it is most abundant at less than 37 m (120 ft).
Black sea bass are protogynous hermaphrodites, meaning that they generally first mature as females and some later become male. The sex change generally occurs over the winter when the fish are 240 to 330 mm (9.5 to 13 in) long.
Read more about this topic: Black Sea Bass
Famous quotes containing the words life and/or cycle:
“Why not make an end of it all?... My life is a succession of griefs and bitter feelings.... What is death?... A very small matter, when all is said; only a fool would be concerned about it.”
—Stendhal [Marie Henri Beyle] (1783–1842)
“The lifelong process of caregiving, is the ultimate link between caregivers of all ages. You and I are not just in a phase we will outgrow. This is life—birth, death, and everything in between.... The care continuum is the cycle of life turning full circle in each of our lives. And what we learn when we spoon-feed our babies will echo in our ears as we feed our parents. The point is not to be done. The point is to be ready to do again.”
—Paula C. Lowe (20th century)