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Larval settlement of the nemertean egg predator Carcinonemertes errans on the Dungeness crab, Metacarcinus magister
Author(s) -
Dunn Paul H.,
Young Craig M.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
invertebrate biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.486
H-Index - 42
eISSN - 1744-7410
pISSN - 1077-8306
DOI - 10.1111/ivb.12059
Subject(s) - biology , larva , predator , host (biology) , metamorphosis , bay , estuary , juvenile , fishery , settlement (finance) , ecology , zoology , predation , oceanography , world wide web , payment , computer science , geology
Abstract Due to their habitat specificity, marine parasites present excellent systems for studying the processes and patterns of larval settlement. Settlement of Carcinonermertes errans , an egg predator of the Dungeness crab, is described here for the first time. Upon contact with a host individual , competent larvae of C. errans settled on the crab's exoskeleton and migrated under the abdominal flap within 24 h. When removed from the host, recently settled worms retained their larval characteristics. After 48 h on the host, however, metamorphosis proceeded and larvae became juvenile worms. Additional field studies showed that competent larvae were present in the waters of the Coos Bay Estuary during the months of August through early November, could infect crab hosts directly from the water column, and exhibited density‐dependent gregarious settlement.