Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
SpringerLink
Log in

Do Functional Requirements for Embryos and Larvae Have a Place in Evo-devo?

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Conceptual Change in Biology

Part of the book series: Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science ((BSPS,volume 307))

Abstract

One goal of studies of evolution and development is to test hypotheses about the history of changes in developmental processes and the resulting forms of organisms. Aspects of development in extant organisms are mapped onto a phylogenetic tree. The fossil record and inferences on divergence from rates of molecular changes adds information about what forms existed when. Studies with this goal can reveal how developmental processes have changed and diverged or persisted. Another goal is to understand why a sequence of forms in a life history evolved and not some other. To meet this second goal one must also develop and test hypotheses about requirements for performance in the environments experienced during development. In the first half of the twentieth century, features of the marine environment and marine life histories stimulated research on the performance of embryos and larvae. Performance requirements were discussed at the 1981 Dahlem conference but their integration with discussions of developmental processes and developmental constraints was limited. Combining information on performance and developmental processes can yield a better understanding of the evolution of development. Examples include: the reasons for having embryos in a life history, risk and duration of embryonic cell cycles, the size and density of swimming blastulae, the effects of larval shapes on stability in swimming, costs and benefits of dispersal of planktonic larvae, the modularity and plasticity of the rudiments of juvenile structures, and reasons for stasis and change in body plans. Information on developmental processes, phylogeny, and the paleontological record is insufficient for understanding why development has evolved as it has.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 109.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 139.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    There are two citations of Garstang (pp. 157, 166), two of Hörstadius (pp. 158, 163), and three of Jägersten (pp. 158, 160, 163).

  2. 2.

    The constraint is not universal. A few large marine animals, like crabs, can ventilate large broods. These have evolved ways of increasing the porosity of a mass of embryos, and of pumping water in and out of the brood. There is, however, an energetic cost, despite decapod crustaceans’ elegant solution to the size problem (Fernández et al. 2000; Baeza and Fernández 2002).

  3. 3.

    In ongoing research, K.Y. Chan is seeking to increase the realism of these simulations further with model plutei based on images from confocal microscopy.

  4. 4.

    One also sees the device of “my hypothesis is the null hypothesis; your hypothesis is the alternative hypothesis.”

  5. 5.

    This highlights another obstacle to studies of marine organisms: many biologists regard terrestrial phenomena as general and marine phenomena as special cases. One editor of American Naturalist commented that marine invertebrates are not of general interest. The sea is the largest habitat on earth, a habitat in which organisms originated and diverged into the major clades. It is not, however, the habitat of the editor.

References

  • Alberch, P. 1982. Developmental constraints in evolutionary processes. In Evolution and development, ed. J.T. Bonner, 313–332. Berlin: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Baeza, J.A., and M. Fernández. 2002. Active brood care in Cancer setosus (Crustacea: Decapoda): The relationship between female behaviour, embryo oxygen consumption and the cost of brooding. Functional Ecology 16: 241–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bertram, D.F., N.E. Phillips, and R.R. Strathmann. 2009. Evolutionary and experimental change in egg volume, heterochrony of larval body and juvenile rudiment, and evolutionary reversibility in pluteus form. Evolution & Development 11: 728–739.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bonner, J.T. (ed.). 1982. Evolution and development. Report of the Dahlem workshop on evolution and development Berlin 1981, May 10–15. Berlin: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clay, T.W., and D. Grünbaum. 2010. Morphology-flow interaction led to stage-selective vertical transport of larval sand dollars in shear flow. Journal of Experimental Biology 213: 1281–1292.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Damen, P., and W.J.A.G. Dictus. 1994. Cell lineage of the prototroch of Patella vulgata (Gastropoda, Mollusca). Developmental Biology 162: 364–383.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • del Pino, E.M., and S. Loor-Vela. 1990. The pattern of early cleavage of the marsupial frog Gastrotheca riobambae. Development 110: 781–789.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emlet, R.B. 1985. Crystal axes in recent and fossil adult echinoids indicate trophic mode in larval development. Science 230: 937–940.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Emlet, R.B. 1991. Functional constraints on the evolution of larval forms of marine invertebrates: Experimental and comparative evidence. American Zoologist 31: 707–725.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emlet, R.B. 1994. Body form and patterns of ciliation in nonfeeding larvae of echinoderms: Functional solutions to swimming in the plankton. American Zoologist 34: 570–585.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fenaux, L., M.F. Strathmann, and R.R. Strathmann. 1994. Five tests of food-limited growth of larvae in coastal waters by comparisons of rates of development and form of echinoplutei. Limnology and Oceanography 39: 84–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fernández, M., C. Bock, and H.O. Pörtner. 2000. The cost of being a caring mother: The ignored factor in the reproduction of marine invertebrates. Ecology Letters 3: 487–494.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freeman, G.L. 1982. What does the comparative study of development tell us about evolution? In Evolution and development, ed. J.T. Bonner, 155–167. Berlin: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Freeman, G., and J.W. Lundelius. 2005. The transition from planktotrophy to lecithotrophy in larvae of Lower Palaeozoic Rhynchonelliform brachiopods. Lethaia 38: 219–254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garstang, W. 1928. The origin and evolution of larval forms. Presidential Address, Section D. British Assembly Glasgow, 23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giard, A. 1905. La poeilogonie. Compte Rendus, VI Congres Internationale Zoologique, Berne 1904, 617–646.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grosberg, R.K., and R.R. Strathmann. 1998. One cell, two cell, red cell, blue cell: The persistence of a unicellular stage in multicellular life histories. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 13: 112–116.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grünbaum, D., and R.R. Strathmann. 2003. Form, performance, and trade-offs in swimming and stability of armed larvae. Journal of Marine Research 61: 659–691.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gyoja, F., Y. Satou, T. Shin-I, Y. Kohara, B.J. Swalla, and N. Satoh. 2007. Analysis of large scale expression sequenced tags (ESTs) from the anural ascidian Molgula tectiformis. Developmental Biology 307: 460–482.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hadfield, M.G., E.J. Carpizo-Ituarte, K. del Carmen, and B.T. Nedved. 2001. Metamorphic competence, a major adaptive convergence in marine invertebrate larvae. American Zoologist 41: 1123–1131.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hart, M.W. 1996. Variation in suspension feeding rates among larvae of some temperate eastern Pacific echinoderms. Invertebrate Biology 115: 30–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hart, M.W., and P.B. Marko. 2010. It’s about time: Divergence, demography, and the evolution of developmental modes of marine invertebrates. Integrative and Comparative Biology 50: 643–661.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hart, M.W., and R.R. Strathmann. 1994. Functional consequences of phenotypic plasticity in echinoid larvae. Biological Bulletin 186: 291–299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hjort, J. 1914. Fluctuations in the great fisheries of northern Europe viewed in the light of biological research. Rapports et Proces-verbaux des Réunions. Conseil International pour l’Éxploration de la Mer 20: 1–228.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jägersten, G. 1972. Evolution of the metazoan life cycle. London: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jeffery, C.H. 1997. Dawn of echinoid nonplanktotrophy: Coordinated shifts in development indicate environmental instability prior to the K-T boundary. Geology 25: 991–994.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kondrashov, A.S. 1994. Mutation load under vegetative reproduction and cytoplasmic inheritance. Genetics 137: 311–318.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamare, M., and M.F. Barker. 1999. In situ estimates of larval development and mortality in the New Zealand sea urchin Evechinus chloroticus (Echinodermata: Echinoidea). Marine Ecology Progress Series 180: 197–211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDonald, K.A. 2012. Earliest ciliary swimming effects vertical transport of planktonic embryos in turbulence and shear flow. Journal of Experimental Biology 215: 141–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDonald, K.A., and D. Grünbaum. 2010. Swimming performance in early development and the “other” consequences of egg size for ciliate planktonic larvae. Integrative and Comparative Biology 50: 589–605.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nützel, A., O. Lehnert, and J. Fryda. 2006. Origin of planktotrophy—evidence from early mollusks. Evolution & Development 8: 325–330.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ohman, M.D., E.G. Durbin, J.A. Runge, B.K. Sullivan, and D.B. Field. 2008. Relationship of predation potential to mortality Calanus finmarchicus on Georges Bank, northwest Atlantic. Limnology and Oceanography 53: 1643–1655.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Page, L.R. 2000. Development and evolution of adult feeding structures in caenogastropods: Overcoming larval functional constraints. Evolution & Development 2: 25–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pennington, J.T., and R.R. Strathmann. 1990. Consequences of the calcite skeletons of planktonic echinoderm larvae for orientation, swimming, and shape. Biological Bulletin 179: 121–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raff, R.A., and M. Byrne. 2006. The active evolutionary lives of echinoderm larvae. Heredity 97: 244–252.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ricklefs, R.E., R.E. Shea, and I.-H. Choi. 1994. Inverse relationship between functional maturity and exponential growth rate of avian skeletal muscle: A constraint on evolutionary response. Evolution 48: 1080–1088.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riedl, R. 1978. Order in living organisms: A systems analysis of evolution. New York: John Wiley and Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rumrill, S.S. 1990. Natural mortality of marine larvae. Ophelia 32: 163–198.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheltema, R.S. 1988. Initial evidence for the transport of teleplanic larvae of benthic invertebrates across the east Pacific barrier. Biological Bulletin 174: 145–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shanks, A.L. 2009. Pelagic larval duration and dispersal distance revisited. Biological Bulletin 216: 373–385.

    Google Scholar 

  • Staver, J.M., and R.R. Strathmann. 2002. Evolution of fast development of embryos to early swimming. Biological Bulletin 203: 58–69.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stearns, S.C. 1982. The role of development in the evolution of life histories. In Evolution and development, ed. J.T. Bonner, 237–258. Berlin: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R. 1974. Introduction to function and adaptation in echinoderm larvae. Thalassia Jugoslavica 10: 321–339.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R. 1985. Feeding and nonfeeding larval development and life-history evolution in marine invertebrates. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 16: 339–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R. 1990. Why life histories evolve differently in the sea. American Zoologist 30: 197–207.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R. 2007. Three functionally distinct kinds of pelagic development. Bulletin of Marine Science 81: 167–179.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R., and D. Grünbaum. 2006. Good eaters, poor swimmers: Compromises in larval form. Integrative and Comparative Biology 46: 312–322.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R., and M.F. Strathmann. 1982. The relation between adult size and brooding in marine invertebrates. American Naturalist 119: 91–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R., and M.F. Strathmann. 1995. Oxygen supply and limits on aggregation of embryos. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 75: 413–428.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R., T.P. Hughes, A.M. Kuris, K.C. Lindeman, S.G. Morgan, J.M. Pandolfi, and R.R. Warner. 2002a. Evolution of local-recruitment and its consequences for marine populations. Bulletin of Marine Science 70(Suppl): 377–396.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R., J.M. Staver, and J.R. Hoffman. 2002b. Risk and the evolution of cell cycle durations of embryos. Evolution 56: 708–720.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strathmann, R.R., G.P. Foley Jr., and A.N. Hysert. 2008. Loss and gain of the juvenile rudiment and metamorphic competence during starvation and feeding of bryozoan larvae. Evolution & Development 10: 731–736.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Takada, N., J. York, J.M. Davis, B. Schumpert, H. Yasuo, N. Satoh, and B.J. Swalla. 2002. Brachyury expression in tailless molgulid ascidian embryos. Evolution & Development 4: 205–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Telford, M.J., and D.T.J. Littlewood (eds.). 2009. Animal evolution. Genomes, fossils, and trees. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorson, G. 1936. The larval development, growth, and metabolism of arctic marine bottom invertebrates. Meddr Grønland 100(6): 1–155.

    Google Scholar 

  • van den Biggelaar, J.A.M. 1971. Timing of the phases of the cell cycle during the period of asynchronous division up to the 49-cell stage in Lymnaea. Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology 26: 367–391.

    Google Scholar 

  • van den Biggelaar, J.A.M., and G. Haszprunar. 1996. Cleavage patterns and mesentoblast formation in the gastropoda: An evolutionary perspective. Evolution 50: 1520–1540.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vance, R.R. 1973. On reproductive strategies in marine benthic invertebrates. American Naturalist 107: 339–352.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warner, R.R., F. Wernerus, P. Lejeune, and E.P. van den Berghe. 1995. Dynamics of female choice for parental care in a species where care is facultative. Behavioral Ecology 6: 73–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Werner, B. 1955. Über die anatomie, die entwicklung und biologie des veligers und der veliconcha von Crepidula fornicata L. (Gastropoda Prosobranchia). Helgoländ Wiss Meeresunters 4: 260–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • West-Eberhard, M.J. 2003. Developmental plasticity and evolution, 794. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, D.P. 1932. On the mitraria larva of Owenia fusiformis Delle Chiaje. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, B: Biological Sciences 221: 231–334.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, D.P. 1952. The influence of the nature of the substratum on the metamorphosis of the larvae of marine animals, especially the larvae of Ophelia bicornis Savigny. Annales de l’Institut Oceanographique, Paris 27: 49–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolpert, L., and E. Szathmary. 2002. Evolution and the egg. Nature 420: 745.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wray, G.A., and R.R. Strathmann. 2002. Stasis, change, and functional constraint in the evolution of animal body plans, whatever they may be. Vie Milieu 52: 189–199.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, X.-G., D.J. Siveter, D. Waloszek, and A. Maas. 2007. An epipodite-bearing crown group crustacean from the Lower Cambrian. Nature 449: 595–598.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Friday Harbor Laboratories and Department of Biology, University of Washington, 620 University Road, Friday Harbor, WA, 98250, USA

    Richard R. Strathmann

Authors
  1. Richard R. Strathmann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Richard R. Strathmann .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Philosophy, Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

    Alan C. Love

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2015 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Strathmann, R.R. (2015). Do Functional Requirements for Embryos and Larvae Have a Place in Evo-devo?. In: Love, A. (eds) Conceptual Change in Biology. Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science, vol 307. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9412-1_3

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation