sea urchin larval development

thought i will post a small video clip we did for our research project in Panama

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbWbJci39k0&

Fascinating!  What did you feed the larvae?

Isochrysis. Raising them was actually much more easy than i tought it would be. They settled after 2 weeks.
 

Fascinating is definitely the word!  Amazing video, thank you so much for sharing!  With us all being breeders, I think most of us would LOVE for you to give us some culture details.    I know images like that certainly make ME want to try!

What SPECIES of urchins were you working with?
 
edit - ahh...I see it's in the vid!
Echinometra viridis
Echinometra lucunter
Lytechinus williamsi
Lytechinus variegatus

The titles on the video state Echinometra viridis, Echinometra lucunter, Lytechinus williamsi, and Lytechinus variegatus.
 
EDIT:  Matt edited while I was replying.

Wow... that is amazing! Love to see stuff like this!

-Adam

very cool!

Proud member of the first dedicated breeders site in the UK
Marine Fish Breeders Club - UK
H.Zosterae - 60 DPS

thank you all for your kind words. There will be an article in the coral magazine where i describe the hole process in detail.
 
  The biggest obstacle for hobbyists might be obtaining the gametes. We used KCL injections to induce spawning and they usually didnt survive that. Heat shock also works at least for Echinometra. When these urchins were very ripe they often spawned in the bucket on the transport back to the laboratory. I tried spawning them in the lab using warm water but i never had any success with Lytechinus. 
 
Larval were fed daily with Isochrysis. About 75% of the water was changed every other day. To keep them in suspension we raised the larvae in rotating jars. Paddle systems work also. They dont tolerate aeration very well, but I m shure you can raise at least some using air pumps.
 
  metamorphosis may start as soon as day 12.  Newly metamorphosed urchins measure about 0,5 mm
 
 

Very interesting, Thanks for sharing!!
 
Are the jars on some type of conveyor? Are the jars completely sealed?

There's actually an urchin hatchery of sorts in Hawaii ( http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=629944825 and Martin Moe has been working with the Diademas for a while now.  SOME Urchins are potentially well within reach of hobbyists with determination!

Thanks for sharing more info "till"! 

Did the larvae need any settlement cues to induce metamorphosis? Or was it basically just a time and food thing?

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

  sorry i forgot telling about that. yes we used coraline and filamentous algae to induce metamorphosis.

Wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing.

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

 
the jars are on rotating PVC pipes to keep them moving. they are completely sealed but opened daily to feed or to change water.

 
This is interesting for sure!

can you describe the rotating instrument more, and with pictures?  We've never seen this thing.  Very curious.