Article contents
Comparison of reproductive characteristics among populations of Dendropoma petraeum-complex (Mollusca: Caenogastropoda), an endemic Mediterranean reef-building vermetid
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 March 2011
Abstract
We examined the density and reproductive characteristics of the Israeli population of the cryptic species complex Dendropoma petraeum—a Mediterranean endemic reef-building gastropod. The population is gonochoristic, with a peak of gonad activity from October–November to May–June. We present here for the first time histological evidence of its reproductive cycles, hermaphroditism and gonadal parasitic infestation. The characteristics studied (gonad activity period, number of egg capsules per female, capsule size and number of eggs/embryos per capsule) were markedly different from those reported for the D. petraeum-complex population in south-east Spain. Our findings on the population's reproductive characteristics provide new information on the differences between the Mediterranean populations of D. petraeum-complex.
- Type
- Research Article
- Information
- Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 92 , Issue 1 , February 2012 , pp. 163 - 170
- Copyright
- Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2011
References
REFERENCES
- 10
- Cited by