Cultivation of marine copepods for genetic and evolutionary research

Abstract

1. Methods are reported for the cultivation of harpacticoid copepods in the laboratory and their utilization for genetic research. 2. Experimental evidence has been obtained that certain ecological parameters, such as salinity and temperature, act as powerful selective agents. This has been demonstrated by considering the effects of the physical environment on the visible polymorphism as well as on the concealed genetic variability. 3. The first results of a series of experiments show that biotic factors can play a selective role which is at least as much effective as that played by physical factors. 4. Another line of investigation followed consists in the study of reproductive isolation between geographic populations of the same species. © 1970 Biologischen Anstalt Helgoland.