Eye development in relation to moult stage in the European lobster Homarus gammarus (L.)

• Published in: ICES Journal of Marine Science
• Main Authors: Shelton, P. M. J., Shelton, R. G. J., Richards, P. R.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 1981
• Subjects: Articles; European lobster; Homarus gammarus
• Online Access: http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/39/3/239; https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/39.3.239

In some Arthropoda it is possible to determine the stadium (moult stage) which an individual has attained by counting the number of ommatidia in the eye. This paper presents the results of an experiment using cultured juvenile lobsters of known moult history to see whether the same method can be applied to the European lobster, Homarus gammarus . It was found that the eye grows isometrically with respect to the carapace and that counts of ommatidia are therefore an unreliable guide to moult stage. Over the restricted range of this experiment (moult stages 6 to 12) it was found that counts of ommatidia indicated moult stage with an accuracy of two stadia only. It is concluded that no other surface feature is likely to provide an unequivocal indication of the stadium.