Journal article
Ctenophore population recruits entirely through larval reproduction in the central Baltic Sea
Section for Ocean Ecology and Climate, National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark1
National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark2
Section for Population Ecology and Genetics, National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark3
Featured as research highlight in Nature. The comb jelly Mertensia ovum, widely distributed in Arctic regions, has recently been discovered in the northern Baltic Sea. We show that M. ovum also exists in the central Baltic but that the population consists solely of small-sized larvae (less than 1.6 mm).
Despite the absence of adults, eggs were abundant. Experiments revealed that the larvae were reproductively active. Egg production and anticipated mortality rates suggest a self-sustaining population. This is the first account of a ctenophore population entirely recruiting through larval reproduction (paedogenesis).
We hypothesize that early reproduction is favoured over growth to compensate for high predation pressure
Language: | English |
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Publisher: | The Royal Society |
Year: | 2012 |
Pages: | 809-812 |
ISSN: | 1744957x and 17449561 |
Types: | Journal article |
DOI: | 10.1098/rsbl.2012.0163 |
ORCIDs: | Jaspers, Cornelia , Thygesen, Uffe Høgsbro and Kiørboe, Thomas |