Modelling intraspecific resting egg shape variation in a freshwater fairy shrimp Tanymastix stagnalis (L., 1758) (Crustacea, Branchiopoda)

• Published in: Biological journal of the Linnean Society Vol. 90; no. 1; pp. 55 - 60
• Main Authors: THIÉRY, ALAIN, RABET, NICOLAS, NÈVE, GABRIEL
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Oxford, UK : Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2007; Blackwell Publishing Ltd; Blackwell
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Anostraca; Biological and medical sciences; Biological evolution; Branchiopoda; Crustacea; cyst volume; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects. Techniques; Genetics of eukaryotes. Biological and molecular evolution; Methods and techniques (sampling, tagging, trapping, modelling...); shape model; Tanymastix stagnalis; British Isles, England, Greater London, London; shape model; cyst volume; Diapause; Biological evolution; Modeling; Macrura; Crustacea; Arthropoda; Anostraca; Models; Decapoda; Invertebrata; Branchiopoda
• ISSN: 0024-4066; 1095-8312
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00711.x

The shape of the resting eggs of a large branchiopod crustacean, the Anostraca Tanymastix stagnalis, is represented very accurately by analytical expressions. The occurrence of atypical shape of some T. stagnalis eggs may be viewed as a simple change of the analytical expression describing the usual egg shape. Their unusual shape may be explained by a higher embryo volume within an envelope of a given size. Biological implications are briefly discussed and hypothesized in an evolutionary point of view.