Larval Development of the Grooved Tanner Crab, Chionoecetes tanneri Rathbun, 1893 (Decapoda: Brachyura: Majidae) Described from the Laboratoryreared Specimens

This paper documents the defining morphological characteristics of the larval stages of Chionoecetes tanneri Rathbun, 1893, the grooved Tanner crab, from specimens reared in the laboratory. Chionoecetes tanneri larval stages include two zoeae and one megalopa. The first zoea is characterized by: six setae on the posterior margin of the carapace; postero-lateral spines on abdominal somites 3 and 4, extending beyond the posterior margin of adjacent somites and bearing 9-10 spinnules; 12 plumose setae and one stout distal plumose seta present on the margin of the scaphognathite of the maxilla; and one fused lateral spine and one articulated dorso-medial spine on each fork of the telson. The second zoea is characterized by: 9 setae on the postero-lateral margin of the carapace; a serrated mandible molar; a mandibular palp bud; 25-26 plumose setae on the margin of the scaphognathite of the maxilla; pereiopods with well-developed gills and buds; and four pairs of stout setae on the posterior margin of the telson. For the megalopal stage, the distinguishing characteristics include: a rostral spine equal in length to the supraorbital spine; six setae on the exopod of the uropod; and a single spine on the ischium of the second pereiopod. This study allows C. tanneri larvae to be distinguished from the larvae of known sympatric congeners. This information provides a basic taxonomic tool for researchers in fisheries management and zooplankton ecology who are addressing issues related to trophic interactions, metapopulation dynamics and ecosystem impacts in the evolving marine resource management strategies in the North Pacific, and those related to Chionoecetes species in particular.