2005 Volume 53 Issue 1 Pages 1-5
Neonates of the rotifer Brachionus plicatilis were exposed to 3, 6, 9 and 12 hours' starvation after hatch, and evaluated the effects on survival rate, life-history parameters, biological minimum size and egg size under the provision of Chlorella as food. Short- period starvation for 3-12 hours induced the decline of survival rate and the reduction in biological minimum size. In addition to those phenomena, the delay of the first spawning was observed proportionally to the starvation period, which implies that the development of a reproductive organ was induced by the commencement of feeding. In spite of the proportional reduction in biological minimum size, egg size had no relation to the starvation period, which shows that somatic growth and egg formation were regulated independently in the rotifer. Even it is short, starvation should be avoided in mass culture of the rotifer in order to prevent both reduction in animal size and survival rate.
