Evolution of feeding structure plasticity in marine invertebrate larvae: a possible trade-off between arm length and stomach size

2005 ◽  
Vol 315 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin G. Miner

Nearly three decades ago, biologists discovered that planktotrophic larvae of sea urchins can alter the size of their ciliated feeding structures in response to the concentration of food (i.e., unicellular algae). In the years since, this response has become one of the best-studied examples of phenotypic plasticity in marine organisms. Researchers have found that this form of plasticity occurs widely among different types of feeding larvae in several phyla, and involves energetic trade-offs with a suite of correlated life history characters. Furthermore, investigators have recently started to unravel the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying this plasticity. We review the literature on feeding-structure plasticity in marine invertebrate larvae. We highlight the diversity of species and variety of experimental designs and statistical methodologies, summarize research findings to draw more general conclusions, and target promising directions for future research.


The functional properties of marine invertebrate larvae represent the sum of the physiological activities of the individual, the interdependence among cells making up the whole, and the correct positioning of cells within the larval body. This chapter examines physiological aspects of nutrient acquisition, digestion, assimilation, and distribution within invertebrate larvae from an organismic and comparative perspective. Growth and development of larvae obviously require the acquisition of “food.” Yet the mechanisms where particulate or dissolved organic materials are converted into biomass and promote development of larvae differ and are variably known among groups. Differences in the physiology of the digestive system (secreted enzymes, gut transit time, and assimilation) within and among feeding larvae suggest the possibility of an underappreciated plasticity of digestive physiology. How the ingestion of seawater by and the existence of a circulatory system within larvae contribute to larval growth and development represent important topics for future research.


1983 ◽  
Vol 61 (8) ◽  
pp. 1701-1719 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D. Burke

The induction of metamorphosis by environmentally derived cues is reviewed in barnacles, molluscs, hydroids, echinoids, and ascidians in the context of the neurological and behavioral model of stimulus and response. The model proposes that cues associated with preferred juvenile or adult habitats are the stimuli. Stimuli are received by receptors that communicate with the effectors of metamorphosis, larval and adult tissues. The response is a combination of morphogenetic, histolytic, and histogenic processes. Receptors in all five taxa are assumed to be superficial sensory receptors, though there is no direct evidence for their involvement in the perception of cues. Although the induction of metamorphosis by environmental cues in all five taxa fits well within a stimulus–response model, there is currently only circumstantial evidence for neural or endocrine control of metamorphosis.


2008 ◽  
Vol 214 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan D. Allen

Author(s):  
P. J. Hayward ◽  
Paul H. Harvey

The spatial settlement of marine invertebrate larvae is not a random process. The distribution of the adults of a particular species is influenced by the behavioural responses of the animal to a range of environmental stimuli which, in the case of many sessile invertebrates, result in the display of clear substrate selection. The role of habitat selection in determining the distribution of aquatic invertebrates has been the subject of a review by Meadows & Campbell (1972). The selection of algal substrata by the larvae of various intertidal species of Bryozoa has been demonstrated by Ryland (1959); among these, the ctenostomatous bryozoans Alcyonidium hirsutum and A. polyoum were shown to exhibit a strong preference for fronds of the alga Fucus serratus, an experi-mental result which accorded well with the distribution of the two species on the shore (Ryland, 1962).


2019 ◽  
Vol 222 (10) ◽  
pp. jeb200899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lillian R. McCormick ◽  
Lisa A. Levin ◽  
Nicholas W. Oesch

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