This is the seventh volume of a ten-volume series on The Natural History of the Crustacea. Chapters in this volume synthesize our current understanding of early crustacean development from the egg through the embryonic and larval phase. The first part of this book focuses on the elemental aspects of crustacean embryonic development. The second part of the book provides an account of the larval phase of crustaceans and describes processes that influence the development from hatching to an adult-like juvenile. The third and final part of the book explores ecological interactions during the planktonic phase and how crustacean larvae manage to find food, navigate the dynamic water column, and avoid predators in a medium that offers few refuges.

Marine invertebrate larvae are an integral part of pelagic diversity and have stimulated the curiosity of researchers for centuries. This book integrates the latest research in order to provide a modern synthesis of this interdisciplinary field.

This is the seventh volume of a ten-volume series on 'The Natural History of the Crustacea'. Chapters in this volume synthesize our current understanding of early crustacean development from the egg through the embryonic and larval phase. The first part of this book focuses on the elemental aspects of crustacean embryonic development. The second part of the book provides an account of the larval phase of crustaceans and describes processes that influence the development from hatching to an adult-like juvenile. The third and final part of the book explores ecological interactions during the planktonic phase and how crustacean larvae manage to find food, navigate the dynamic water column, and avoid predators in a medium that offers few refuges.

A classic problem in evolutionary biology is the origin of larvae - how and why did they occur? Indeed, it has often been suggested that many entirely unique body plans first originated as retained larvae of ancestral organisms. But what of the larvae themselves? What developmental and evolutionary forces shape and constrain them? These questions and others are dealt with by this international team of leading zoologists and developmental biologists. Intended to contribute to a continuing dialectic, this book presents diverse opinions as well as manifold conclusions. Certain to challenge and intrique, The Origin and Evolution of Larval Forms should be a part of the library of every evolutionary and developmental biologist interested in larvae and their significance.

About 90 per cent of the 10,000 known species of the Crustacea Decapoda live in oceans and adjacent coastal and estuarine regions, and most of them pass through a complex life history comprising a benthic (juvenile-adult) and a planktonic (larval) phase. The larvae show a wide array of adaptations to the pelagic environment, including modifications in their functional morphology, anatomy, the molting cycle, nutrition, growth, chemical composition, metabolism, energy partitioning, ecology and behaviour.;All these traits are reviewed in this volume, attempting to promote an integrated, multidisciplinary view of the biology of larval Decapoda and other crustacean taxa. Emphasis is placed on the lesser-known anatomical, bioenergetic and ecophysiological aspects of larval life, as morphology has already been extensively documented. Changes in biological parameters (for example, rates of feeding, growth, metabolism) are shown in successive developmental stages, within individual stages, and as responses to environmental factors. Particular attention is paid to interrelationships between intrinsic phenomena (molting cycle, organogenesis, growth) and the overlaying effects of extrinsic factors (for example, food, temperature, salinity, pollution). Concluding from the available data, major bias and gaps in present knowledge of larval biology are identified and discussed as to their potential significance in future research.

This is the first book to provide a detailed treatment of the field of larval ecology. The 13 chapters use state-of-the-art reviews and critiques of nearly all of the major topics in this diverse and rapidly growing field. Topics include: patterns of larval diversity, reproductive energetics, spawning ecology, life history theory, larval feeding and nutrition, larval mortality, behavior and locomotion, larval transport, dispersal, population genetics, recruitment dynamics and larval evolution. Written by the leading new scientists in the field, chapters define the current state of larval ecology and outline the important questions for future research.

The most complete illustrated scientific review of starfish ever published. Among the most fascinating animals in the world’s oceans are the more than 2,000 species of starfish. Called “Asteroids” by scientists who study them (after their taxonomic name, Asteroidea)—or sea stars in some parts of the world—starfish are easily recognized because of their star-like form. Starfish is a comprehensive volume devoted to the integrative and comparative biology and ecology of starfish. Written by the world's leading experts on starfish, the integrative section covers topics such as reproduction, developmental biology and ecology, larval ecology, and the ecological role of starfish as a group. The comparative section considers the biology and ecology of important species such as Acanthaster planci, Heliaster helianthoides, Asterias amurensis, and Pisaster ochraceus. Replete with detailed, scientifically accurate illustrations and the latest research findings, Starfish examines the important role of these invertebrates in the marine environment, a topic of great interest because of their impact on the food web. As major predators that are able to evert their stomach and wrap it around their prey, starfish can have a significant impact on commercial fisheries. Starfish are of interest not only to echinoderm specialists but also to marine biologists and invertebrate zoologists in general and, increasingly, to the medical community. A starfish’s ability to regenerate body parts is almost unequalled in the animal world, making them ideal models for basic science studies on the topic. Contributors: Charles D. Amsler, Bill J. Baker, Mario Barahona, Michael F. Barker, Maria Byrne, Juan Carlos Castilla, Katharina Fabricius, Patrick Flammang, Andrew S. Gale, Carlos F. Gaymer, Jean-François Hamel, Elise Hennebert, John H. Himmelman, Michel Jangoux, John M. Lawrence, Tatiana Manzur, James B. McClintock, Bruce A. Menge, Annie Mercier, Anna Metaxas, Sergio A. Navarette, Timothy D. O’Hara, John S. Pearse, Carlos Robles, Eric Sanford, Robert E. Scheibling, Richard L. Turner, Carlos Renato R. Ventura, Kristina M. Wasson, Stephen A. Watts