Illustrated key for the identification of brachyuran megalopae (Crustacea: Decapoda) in the plankton of Peter the Great Bay (Sea of Japan)

Abstract

A dichotomous key for brachyuran megalopae from Peter the Great Bay (Russian waters of the Sea of Japan) is provided. The key covers 18 taxa identified to species level and uses only the external characters of larvae that are easy to observe with a stereomicroscope without specimen dissection. The key is mainly based on the new original descriptions of larvae obtained both from plankton samples and from laboratory culture. Period of occurrence of larvae of each species in the plankton is also presented.