Larval Biology & Behavior

In addition to my ocean acidification-related work with larvae, I have collaborated with researchers from other universities to explore how larvae experience their environment prior to settlement. Using a larval flow tank, we examined fine-scale settlement behavior of cyphonautes larvae of the bryozoan, Membranipora membranacea, in response to two different algal substrata. We showed that these larvae altered their search strategies depending on habitat preference (Matson et al., 2010). Larvae exhibited fine-scale active search behaviors with the preferred alga but broad-scale passive behaviors in the presence of less-preferred alga. Understanding such behaviors helps to shed light on larval settlement processes and the mechanisms linking larval supply and recruitment.  


Related Publications

  • Yu PC, Sewell MA, Matson PG, Rivest EB, Kapsenberg L, Hofmann GE (2013) Growth attenuation with developmental schedule progression in embryos and early larvae of Sterechinus neumayeri raised under elevated CO2. PLoS ONE 8: e52448.
  • Matson PG, Yu PC, Sewell MA, Hofmann GE (2012) Development Under Elevated pCO2 Conditions Does Not Affect Lipid Utilization and Protein Content in Early Life-History Stages of the Purple Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. Biological Bulletin 223: 312-327.
  • Yu PC, Matson PG, Martz TR, Hofmann GE (2011) The ocean acidification seascape and its relationship to the performance of calcifying marine invertebrates: Laboratory experiments on the development of urchin larvae framed by environmentally-relevant pCO2/pH. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 400: 288-295.

 

  • Fangue, NA, O’Donnell MJ, Sewell MA, Matson PG, MacPherson AC, Hofmann GE (2010) A laboratory-based, experimental system for the study of ocean acidification effects on marine larvae. Limnology and Oceanography: Methods 8: 441-452.
  • Matson PG, Steffen BT, Allen RM (2010) Settlement behavior of cyphonautes larvae of the bryozoan Membranipora membranacea in response to different algal substrata. Invertebrate Biology 129: 277-283.