The secret life of deep-sea shrimps: ecological and evolutionary clues from the larval description of Systellaspis debilis (Caridea: Oplophoridae)

Abstract

Currently there are 21 shrimp species in the northeastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea which are considered to belong to the superfamily Oplophoroidea, but the larval development is unknown for most of them. The complete larval development of Systellaspis debilis (Milne-Edwards, 1881), here described and illustrated, is the first one to have been successfully reared in the laboratory, consisting of four zoeal and one decapodid stages. The zoeae were found to be fully lecithotrophic, which together with the females’ lower fecundity, are probably evolutionary consequences of the species mesopelagic habitat.