Evolutionary and experimental change in egg volume, heterochrony of larval body and juvenile rudiment, and...

Heterochronic developmental plasticity of the juvenile rudiment and larval body of sea urchin larvae occurs in response to supply of food. Evolutionary increase in egg size can also be associated with earlier development of the juvenile rudiment. We examined effects of egg volume of feeding larvae on this heterochrony and other changes in larval form. (1) Evolutionary and experimental enlargements of egg volume did not accelerate formation of the rudiment relative to the larval body. Development of the larval body and juvenile rudiment was compared for the echinoids Strongylocentrotus purpuratus (with an egg of 78-82 microm) and Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis (with an egg of 150-160 microm diameter). Development of both larval body and rudiment were accelerated in S. droebachiensis relative to S. purpuratus but with greater acceleration of the larval body, so that the rudiment of S. droebachiensis was initiated at a later larval stage even though at an earlier age. Also, experimentally doubling the egg volume of S. purpuratus did not accelerate development of the juvenile rudiment relative to the larval body. (2) Both species exhibited similar plasticity in timing of rudiment development in response to food supplies. (3) Doubling egg volume of S. purpuratus produced a larval form more similar to that of S. droebachiensis. This result mirrors previous experiments in which larvae from half embryos of S. droebachiensis were more similar to larvae of S. purpuratus. Many of the effects of egg volume on larval form are similar against either species' genetic background and are thus evolutionarily reversible effects on larval form.