Embryonic and Larval Intracapsular Development of the Rapa Whelk Rapana venosa (Valenciennes, 1846) (Gastropoda, Muricidae)

Abstract

The duration of embryonic and larval intracapsular development of Rapana venosa, an invasive species of the Black Sea, was studied under experimental conditions (water temperature of 23°C and salinity of 18‰). The development of embryos and larvae in the egg capsules was described day by day. Larvae hatched from the egg capsules on the 19th–20th day after the eggs were laid. The morphology of egg capsule walls and micropores is described, and photomicrographs of them are presented. The studied features of R. venosa reproductive strategy explain the high adaptive capacity and wide distribution of this species.