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Ovoviviparity and the structure of the brood pouch in Melanoides tuberculata (Gastropoda: Prosobranchia: Thiaridae)
Author(s) -
BenAmi Frida,
Hodgson Alan N.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal of morphology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.652
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1097-4687
pISSN - 0362-2525
DOI - 10.1002/jmor.10307
Subject(s) - biology , brood , pouch , connective tissue , prosobranchia , anatomy , embryo , gastropoda , lumen (anatomy) , larva , zoology , ecology , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics
Abstract The freshwater gastropod Melanoides tuberculata broods its young in a pouch located in the anterodorsal region of the head‐foot. The wall of the brood pouch is composed of smooth muscle surrounded by connective tissue. The lumen of the brood pouch is incompletely partitioned by trabeculae, formed by extensions or folds in the chamber wall that are composed of smooth muscle, connective tissue, nonciliated squamous epithelial cells, and some storage cells containing lipid and glycogen. The lumen of the chamber also contains a few cells with storage products. The general absence of secretory cells suggests that embryos derive little nutrition from the mother, and therefore embryonic development is probably ovoviviparous. Embryos in various stages of development were found within brood pouches, with later stage embryos varying in size. There was a negative relationship between embryo size and number of embryos in the brood pouch. J. Morphol. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.