Abstract
The sex of sea urchins cannot, with very few exceptions, be ascertained by any external morphological character. A very simple method of distinguishing male and female is to pass an alternating electric current of 10 volts through the animal, and it will at once shed its sperm or eggs. Ordinary 60-cycle alternating current can be used, with the 110-voltage reduced to 10 volts by a household bell transformer or a ‘Variac’. Lead electrodes have been found best as they are non-toxic and are easily made from lead tubing (3 mm. bore) sealed over copper wire, or from heavy lead wire. The electrodes are placed at any two points on the shell of the animal which lies, aboral side up, covered with sea water. Almost immediately after the current is passed, the eggs or sperm will exude from each of the five gonopores, the sperm in a thin white thread, and the eggs in a thicker red (in Arbacia) thread, later tending to clump. When the current is stopped, the shedding ceases; but it begins again when the current is allowed to pass. In this way, the sex of the animal can be quickly determined, and a few eggs or a little sperm obtained without harming the animal; and the same animal can be used repeatedly. The eggs, if removed at once, fertilize perfectly and develop normally. The method is of great value in places where sea urchins have become scarce.
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Iwata, K. S., Annot. Zool. Jap., 23, 39 (1950).
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HARVEY, E. Electrical Method of determining the Sex of Sea Urchins. Nature 173, 86 (1954). https://doi.org/10.1038/173086a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/173086a0
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