Abstract
Among three sympatric species of epibenthic amphipods found at different tide marks at Jamaica Bay, New York (USA), the length of time juveniles spend with the mother increases and the number of juveniles per brood decreases as tidal height increases. Each brood has two developmental periods: (1) the embryonic period, from ovulation to hatching; (2) the juvenile period, from hatching to emergence from the marsupium. Gammarus palustris, found at the high-tide mark, has a mean juvenile period of 1.7 days and a mean brood size of 12.4 offspring; G. mucronatus, found at mean-tide mark, has a mean juvenile period of 0.8 days and a mean brood size of 27.4 offspring; Melita nitida, found at low-tide mark, has a mean juvenile period of 0.5 days and a mean brood size of 30.0 offspring. Further, the range of days that a juvenile may emerge is widest for G. palustris (0 to 8 days after hatching) and narrowest for M. nitida (0 to 2 days).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature Cited
Blegvad, H.: On the biology of some Danish gammarids and mysids (Gammarus locusta, Mysis flexuosa, Mysis neglecta, Mysis inermis). Rep. Dan. biol. Sta. 28, 1–103 (1922)
Borowsky, B.: Patterns of reproduction in three species of littoral epibenthic gammarid amphipods, Gammarus palustris, Gammarus mucronatus, and Melita nitida, 259 pp. Ph.D. thesis, City University of New York 1978
Gable, M.F. and R.A. Croker: The salt-marsh amphipod Gammarus palustris (Bousfield, 1969) at the northern limit of its distribution. I. Ecology and life cycle. Estuar. cstl mar. Sci. 5, 123–135 (1977)
Green, J.: The biology of estuarine animals 401 pp. London: Sidgwick & Jackson 1968
Hynes, H.B.N.: The ecology of Gammarus duebeni Lilljeborg and its occurrence in fresh water in western Britain. J. Anim. Ecol. 23, 38–48 (1954)
—: The reproductive cycle of some British freshwater Gammaridae. J. Anim. Ecol. 24, 352–387 (1955)
Kaestner, A.: Invertebrate zoology, Vol. III. The Crustacea, 523 pp. New York: Wiley-Interscience 1970
Kinne, O.: Ecological data on the amphipod Gammarus duebeni. A monograph. Veröff. Inst. Meeresforsch. Bremerh. 6, 177–202 (1959)
— (Ed.): Marine ecology, Vol. I. Environmental factors, Part 1, 681 pp. London: Wiley-Interscience 1970
Knight-Jones, E.W.: Laboratory experiments on gregariousness during settling in Balanus balanoides and other barnacles. J. exp. Biol. 30, 584–598 (1953)
Koch-Kallnbach, M.E. and M.P.D. Meijering: Duration of instars and precopulae in Gammarus pulex (Linneaus, 1758), and Gammarus roeselii (Gervais, 1835) under semi-natural conditions. Crustaceana (Suppl.) 4, 119–127 (1977)
Scheltema, R.S.: Metamorphosis of the veliger larvae of Nassarius obsoletus in response to bottom sediment. Biol. Bull. mar. biol. Lab., Woods Hole 120, 92–109 (1961)
Sexton, E.W. and A. Matthews: Notes on the life history of G. chevreuxi. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 9, 546–556 (1913)
— and G.M. Spooner: An account of Marinogammarus (Schellenberg) gen. nov. (Amphipoda), with a description of a new species, Marinogammarus pirlotti. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 24, 633–682 (1940)
Sheader, M. and F.S. Chia: Development, fecundity and brooding behavior of the amphipod Marinogammarus obtusatus. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 50, 1079–1099 (1970)
Sokal, R.R. and F. J. Rohlf: The principles and practice of statistics in biological research, 776 pp. San Francisco, California: W.H. Freeman & Co. 1969
Steele, D.H. and V.J. Steele: The biology of Gammarus (Crustacea, Amphipoda) in the northwestern Atlantic. VII. The duration of embryonic development in five species at various temperatures. Can. J. Zool. 51, 995–999 (1973)
——: The biology of Gammarus (Crustacea, Amphipoda) in the northwestern Atlantic. IX. Gammarus wilkitzkii Birula, Gammarus stoerensis Reid, and Gammarus mucronatus Say. Can. J. Zool. 53, 1105–1109 (1975)
Thorson, G.: Reproductive and larval ecology of marine bottom invertebrates. Biol. Rev. 25, 1–45 (1950)
Van Dolah, R.F., L.E. Shapiro and C.P. Rees: Analysis of an intertidal population of the amphipod Gammarus palustris using a modified version of the egg-ratio method. Mar. Biol. 33, 323–330 (1975)
Wildish, D.J.: Post-embryonic growth and age in some littoral Orchestia (Amphipoda, Talitridae). Crustaceana (Suppl.) 3, 267–274 (1972)
Wilson, E.O.: Sociobiology, the new synthesis, 697 pp. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap Press-Harvard University 1975
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by I. Morris, West Boothbay Harbor
This work was submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. at the City University of New York.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Borowsky, B. Reproductive patterns of three intertidal salt-marsh gammaridean amphipods. Mar. Biol. 55, 327–334 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00393785
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00393785