Berried females that are captured by participating fishermen are
measured and the developmental stage of the eggs that they are
carrying is recorded. Egg stages range from 1-4 and are
determined by color as well as the presence or absence of an eye
spot. The following pictures illustrate the four stages
recorded. Below this field key are more detailed pictures of
eggs at each stage taken under a microscope. For our purposes,
we record four egg stages instead of five, as it is difficult to
distinguish between stages 2-4 in the field. Our distinctions
are as follows: Stage 1: All black, Stage 2: Some eggs have a
lighter half, Stage 3: Eggs have an eye spot, Stage 4: Eggs are
brown. *Helluy, S. and Beltz, B.S. 1991. Embryonic development
of an American lobster (Homaurs americanus): Quantitative
staging and characterization of an embryonic molt cycle. Biol.
Bull..180: 355-371. Stage 1: <25% Stage 2: 25-50% Stage 3:
50-75% Stage 4: 75-100%. Following dissection a pleopod is
removed from the female for viewing unde