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The “agitator”: an inexpensive device for culturing large numbers of fragile marine invertebrate larvae

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Abstract

The “agitator”, a device designed for culturing lecithotrophic echinoderm larvae, is described. The unit consists of an open system which is easily constructed and is made up of a base which holds the culturing baskets as well as a lid or manifold carrying a tube which transports fresh seawater into each culture, gently stirring it and eliminating any decaying embryos. The device is scalable and water flow can be adjusted for laminar flow or slow dripping. The method has been used to successfully rear large numbers of lecithotrophic larvae of the starfish Solaster stimpsoni. The agitator could be used to culture any fragile planktonic organisms that require an extended rearing time.

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Acknowledgments

I wish to thank Dr. C.J. Lowe and Dr. M. LaBarbera for support and encouragement. Dr. R. Strathmann made suggestions on early versions of the manuscript and coined the term "Agitator". The helpful comments from three anonymous reviewers were very much appreciated and improved the manuscript greatly. I am grateful to the staff, faculty, and students at the Friday Harbor labs. Special thanks to D. and Dr. A. Aronowicz, C. and A. Schneider, as well as P. Weiss. I was funded by a National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada postgraduate scholarship and the Allan J. Kohn endowed fellowship (Friday Harbor Laboratories) during much of this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University of Chicago, 1027 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Jochanan Aronowicz

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  1. Jochanan Aronowicz
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Correspondence to Jochanan Aronowicz.

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Communicated by J.P. Grassle, New Brunswick.

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Aronowicz, J. The “agitator”: an inexpensive device for culturing large numbers of fragile marine invertebrate larvae. Mar Biol 151, 1137–1141 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-006-0554-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-006-0554-3

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