 Females give birth to one to 13 (usually six to 12) pups every other year in shallow nursery areas, following a gestation period of 10–11 months.Unlike in the American lemon shark, scant evidence indicates this species is philopatric (returns to the site of their birth to reproduce).Parturition occurs in October or November at Madagascar and Aldabra, and in January at French Polynesia; ovulation and mating for nonpregnant females takes place at around the same time.