Zeitschrift für Meeresbiologie und Ozeanographie

Role of Melatonin an Antioxidant in the Control of Fish Reproduction

Michael Coleman

The majority of fish are intermittent or seasonal breeders. They have a short time of peak reproductive activity or spawning, followed by a long and intricate preparation system. Periodic reproductive events in a yearly cycle generally coincide with seasonal changes in one or more of a group of environmental cues to guarantee that breeding takes place during the most favourable time of the year. Biological rhythms enable organisms to track the passage of time. Solar day length or photoperiod, temperature, rainfall, nutrients, and food supplies are among the environmental components that make up the information reservoir used by fish species to time seasonal reproduction. Some limnological characteristics, including as pH, turbidity, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and total alkalinity, as well as other elements, such as lunar periodicity, may, on the other hand, influence the ultimate act of spawning.