Question:
Identify the larva given in the picture :
Identify the larva given in the picture :
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Remember: "Phyllo-" means leaf-like, and "soma" means body. The leaf-like, flat transparent larva of a spiny lobster is always a Phyllosoma larva.
Updated On: Jul 21, 2026
- Phyllosoma
- Nauplius
- Veliger
- Megalopa
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The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Various marine invertebrates, particularly crustaceans and molluscs, undergo complex larval stages during their development.
Each larval stage has diagnostic morphological features designed for a planktonic existence.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
The larva illustrated in the image is characterized by a highly flattened, transparent, leaf-like body with exceptionally long, slender, biramous thoracic appendages.
This is the classic Phyllosoma larva, which is the planktonic larval stage of spiny lobsters (family Palinuridae, order Decapoda).
Its thin, transparent body provides excellent buoyancy and serves as an adaptation to drift over long distances in ocean currents.
Let us review the characteristics of the other options:
1. Nauplius: The first larval stage of most crustaceans (like barnacles and copepods), which is unsegmented, has three pairs of appendages, and a single median eye.
2. Veliger: The free-swimming larval stage of many molluscs, characterized by a ciliated velum used for swimming and feeding.
3. Megalopa: The final larval stage of crabs, which resembles a small crab but has its abdomen extended backwards.
Step 4: Final Answer:
Therefore, the larva shown is Phyllosoma.
Various marine invertebrates, particularly crustaceans and molluscs, undergo complex larval stages during their development.
Each larval stage has diagnostic morphological features designed for a planktonic existence.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
The larva illustrated in the image is characterized by a highly flattened, transparent, leaf-like body with exceptionally long, slender, biramous thoracic appendages.
This is the classic Phyllosoma larva, which is the planktonic larval stage of spiny lobsters (family Palinuridae, order Decapoda).
Its thin, transparent body provides excellent buoyancy and serves as an adaptation to drift over long distances in ocean currents.
Let us review the characteristics of the other options:
1. Nauplius: The first larval stage of most crustaceans (like barnacles and copepods), which is unsegmented, has three pairs of appendages, and a single median eye.
2. Veliger: The free-swimming larval stage of many molluscs, characterized by a ciliated velum used for swimming and feeding.
3. Megalopa: The final larval stage of crabs, which resembles a small crab but has its abdomen extended backwards.
Step 4: Final Answer:
Therefore, the larva shown is Phyllosoma.
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