EMBRYONIC AND LARVAL DEVELOPMENT OF HALIOTIS TUBERCULATA COCCINEA REEVE: AN INDEXED MICRO-PHOTOGRAPHIC SEQUENCE

Abstract

First description of the complete embryo and larval development of the Canarian abalone (Haliotis tuberculata coccinea Reeve.) was conducted along 39 stages from fertilization to the appearance of the third tubule on the cephalic tentacles and illustrated in a microphotographic sequence. Eggs obtained by induced spawning with hydrogen peroxide from the GIA captive broodstock were stocked at a density of 10 eggs/mL and kept at 23 ± 0.5C for 62 h until the formation of the third tubule. Live eggs and larvae were continuously observed on a 24 h basis at a 3400 magnification under transmitted light. At each stages, specific morphological features, illustrated by microscopic photographs, were described, as well as the time required for their apparition. Fertilized eggs diameter was 205 ± 8 mm (mean ± SD), whereas length and width of larvae ready to undergo metamorphosis were 216.6± 5.3 mm and 172± 8.8 mm, respectively. Knowledge on the larval morphological development acquired through this study will contribute to the improvement of larval rearing techniques for this abalone species.