Abstract
WHEN mature, a female Gammarus has long oostegites fringed with setae which lock together to form a brood pouch where the fertilized eggs are incubated. The development of the setae coincides with the enlargement of oogonia and is presumably dependent on hormonal control. The setose oostegites may persist through several consecutive moults, provided a new brood is produced each time. If the development of oogonia is stopped either by removal of the ovary or by some external physical factor, the oostegite setae are lost at the next moult and the female is said to have entered a resting stage. The reappearance of the setae may be brought about by the subsequent enlargement of the oogonia1,2. It is apparent that the resting stage is a mechanism by which the reproductive cycle may be regulated.
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References
Charniaux-Cotton, H., in The Physiology of Crustacea (edit. by Waterman, T. H.), 1, 411 (Academic Press, 1960).
Kinne, O., Zool. Anz., 150, 41 (1953).
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STEELE, V. Resting Stage in the Reproductive Cycles of Gammarus. Nature 214, 1034 (1967). https://doi.org/10.1038/2141034a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/2141034a0
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