Abstract
In order to develop a culture method for larvae of the major fouling barnacle Megabalanus rosa, we examined the effects of food concentration and larval density on the naupliar larval development and metamorphosis into the cyprid. When nauplius larvae were cultured with the diatoms Chaetoceros gracilis and/or Skeletonema costatum at different concentrations, metamorphosis rates to the cyprid increased with the diatom concentration up to 60×104cells/ml. Naupliar survival rates and metamorphosis rates to the cyprid decreased with increasing larval density when nauplii were cultured at 20°C with 60×104cells/ml of the diatom mixture. From these results, it appears that larval density should be kept below 2 larvae/ml, and food concentration above 60×104cells/ml, during mass culture of M. rosa larvae.
