- Joined
- Oct 1, 2009
- Messages
- 1,375
We call them babies, hatchings and the ever so cute inklets. Is there a proper name?
I really need to know
Thanks
I really need to know
Thanks
SueAndHerZoo;175082 said:Doesn't much matter what we call them.... they don't come when called anyway!
(Sorry, couldn't resist)
Lmecher;175083 said:Sabrina, I agree, inklet is too cute.
and Sue.... you know this from experience?
SabrinaR;175086 said:We ALL know this from experience though not all are inklets .
Development of cephalopods does not involve metamorphosis as in many marine invertebrates (Boletzky 1974). Young & Harman (1988), have proposed the term paralarvae, to be applied to cephalopods in the post-hatching growth stage, which is pelagic innear-surfacewaters during the day and has adistinctlydifferent mode-of-life from that of older individuals.
Octopuses of the family Octopodidae adopt two major life-history strategies. The first is the production of relatively few, large eggs resulting in well-developed hatchlings that resemble the adults and rapidly adopt the benthic habit of their parents. The second strategy is production of numerous small eggs that hatch into planktonic, free-swimming hatchlings with few suckers, simple chromatophores and transparent musculature. These distinctive planktonic stages are termed paralarvae and differ from conspecific adults in their morphology, physiology, ecology and behaviour. This study aims to review available knowledge on this subject. In benthic octopuses with planktonic stages, spawning characteristics and duration of planktonic life seem to play an important role in their dispersal capacities. Duration of the hatching period of a single egg mass can range from 2 days to 11 wk, while duration of the planktonic stage can range from 3 wk to half a year, depending on the species and temperature. Thus these paralarvae possess considerable potential for dispersal. In some species, individuals reach relatively large sizes while living as part of the micronekton of oceanic, epipelagic waters. Such forms appear to delay settlement for an unknown period that is suspected to be longer than for paralarvae in more coastal, neritic waters. During the planktonic period, paralarval octopuses feed on crustaceans as their primary prey. In addition to the protein, critical to the protein-based metabolism of octopuses (and all cephalopods), the lipid and copper contents of the prey also appear important in maintaining normal growth. Littoral and oceanic fishes are their main predators and defence behaviours may involve fast swimming speeds, use of ink decoys, dive responses and camouflage. Sensory systems of planktonic stages include photo-, mechano- and chemoreceptors controlled by a highly evolved nervous system that follows the general pattern described for adult cephalopods. On settlement, a major metamorphosis occurs in morphology, physiology and behaviour. Morphological changes associated with the settlement process include positive allometric arm growth; chromatophore, iridophore and leucophore genesis; development of skin sculptural components and a horizontal pupillary response.