Effects of evolution on egg development time Hirst, Andrew;
Lopez-Urrutia, Angel. 2006 Effects of evolution on egg
development time. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 326. 29-35.
10.3354/meps326029Full text not available from this repository.
Using a global data set on egg hatch times in zooplanktonic and
nektonic ectotherms from marine waters, the combined effects of
body size, temperature and life-history attributes on
development times were examined. After correcting for mass and
temperature the mean egg hatch times (from laying to hatching)
were 20 times faster in some taxa than in others. Some of the
divergence in hatch times can be accounted for by the
disposition strategy of the eggs. Eggs that are protected after
laying (e.g. carried by the female, or attached to a substrate
or floating in clumped masses) take 3.3 times longer on average
to develop to hatching than those spawned individually and
freely into the pelagic environment (i.e. ‘unprotected’), and
this difference is independent of egg size. Giv