Life-cycle of Choniomyzon inflatus Wakabayashi, Otake, Tanaka & Nagasawa, 2013 (Copepoda: Siphonostomatoida: Nicothoidae) with the morphological descriptions of the nauplius, copepodid and adult male

摘要

Choniomyzon inflatus Wakabayashi, Otake, Tanaka & Nagasawa, 2013 (Copepoda: Siphonostomatoida: Nicothoidae), an associate of the scyllarid lobster Ibacus novemdentatus Gibbes, was found to pass through at least four developmental stages: nauplius, copepodid I (CI), copepodid II or later (CII+) and adult. Free-living nauplii were observed hatching from the ovisacs of adult females. CI was found on the body surface of both female and male hosts, whereas CII+ and adult were obtained from the female host's egg masses. The life-cycle of this copepod is presumed to be as follows: (i) nauplius develops into CI in the water column; (ii) infective CI settles on body surface of host; (iii) CI moults into the following stage, changing its microhabitat from host's body surface to egg masses; (iv) CII+ develops on egg masses of host until adult stage; and (v) adult female and male mate on the host's egg masses.