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Exuvium analysis: A nondestructive method of analyzing copepod growth and development
Author(s) -
Twombly Saran,
Burns Carolyn W.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
limnology and oceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 197
eISSN - 1939-5590
pISSN - 0024-3590
DOI - 10.4319/lo.1996.41.6.1324
Subject(s) - copepod , biology , crustacean , moulting , instar , ecology , zooplankton , growth rate , population , zoology , larva , demography , mathematics , sociology , geometry
Quantitative measurements of individual growth and developmental rates are necessary to study copepod life‐history ecology, population dynamics, and secondary production, yet these measurements are difficult to obtain, particularly for naupliar instars. Copepods molt several times during their life cycle, and the resulting exuvium provides an accurate record of an individual’s size at molting. Newly hatched nauplii of two freshwater calanoid copepods ( Boeckella triarticulata and Boeckella hamata ) were reared in the laboratory under identical conditions and examined daily for the presence of exuviae, which were used to quantify individual growth and development. Both size and age at successive molts were variable among individuals of each species. Some individuals consistently developed more slowly or more rapidly than others, and individual differences in growth rates also were highly significant. Exuvium analysis provides accurate, quantitative data on individual patterns of growth and development throughout the life cycle.