Confirmed Symposia

This symposium will focus on the evolutionary physiology of the Crustacea, notably on osmotic and ionic regulation and metabolic, excretory and developmental physiology as driven by marine-freshwater transitions, and organismal, structural, biochemical and molecular adaptations to extant habitats. We begin by evaluating methodologies for establishing phylogenetic hypotheses and then examine procedures to map physiological characteristics onto such phylogenies, to estimate ancestral traits, to test adaptive hypotheses and to evaluate co-evolutionary processes. Speakers will then elaborate on specific topics and taxa that examine the principles of evolutionary physiology as illustrated by ion transport and metabolic and excretory mechanisms, use of molecular methods and markers, gene and protein expressions and pertinent comparative methodologies. Such issues, when integrated at different levels of structural organization, will disclose the mechanisms that have governed the patterns and processes of physiological evolution in extant crustaceans.

Crustaceans exhibit an amazing amount of diversity in their larval forms, an aspect of their biology that is responsible, at least in part, for their evolutionary success. Although all crustaceans exhibit a nauplius stage (not all of which are released as free larvae), development to adulthood for many groups includes several additional unique larval types. Some life cycles of crustaceans include gradual larval changes (anamorphic) whereas others exhibit abrupt changes (metamorphosis) including multiple larval types and transitions in habitat or host. Those taxa with metamorphosis include commercially (e.g., portunid crabs) and ecologically (e.g., parasites) important groups. The larvae of some taxa have been well documented, whereas many others remain understudied or have unknown relationships with adult forms (e.g., facetotectans). This symposium will focus on the diversity of crustacean larvae (widely conceived in terms of morphology, phylogenetic relationships, and biogeography) as well as their ecology and key roles in planktonic communities. In addition, aspects of larval development will be explored, including studies on crustaceans of importance in aquaculture and sustainable fisheries. We hope these discussions fill in gaps on the natural history of crustacean larvae and inspire new studies to more fully understand these critical life cycle stages.

Crustaceans, of the most ancient arthropod groups in which sexual differentiation has been studied, exhibit a variety of reproductive strategies including gonochorism, hermaphroditism, intersexuality and even parthenogenesis and thus serving as excellent models to study sexual plasticity.

This hyper diverse group which contains over 65,000 species is inhabiting most aquatic niches and serving vital roles in the maintenance of the ecosystem’s health. They also serve as indicators for endocrine disruptors in polluted aquatic areas affecting sexual differentiation inflicting sexual bias in population structures. Moreover, since many species show sexually biased dimorphic growth patterns, the notable sexual plasticity of crustaceans often calls for the establishment of monosex aquaculture and mariculture biotechnologies. Therefore, in an era characterized by climate change and increased pollution which affects the stability of aquatic habitats, the field of sexual plasticity in crustaceans is of global interest at both ecological and food security aspects.

This symposium serves to communicate novel research that emphasizes the mechanism of sexual plasticity in crustaceans. Topics include life history studies, reproductive physiology, sexual differentiation, intersexuality, hermaphroditism, species conservation, population ecology and sex-manipulation-based biotechnologies for aquaculture, mariculture, and biocontrol. Other studies will be considered if they show direct relevance to sexual plasticity in crustaceans at the broad sense.