Définition : Living in the fluid medium (water or air) but unable to maintain their position or distribution independently of the movement of the water/air mass (adapted from Lincoln et al., 1998).
Définition : A sheet of saline water separated from the open sea by sand or shingle banks. The sheet of water between an offshore reef, especially of coral and mainland. The sheet of water within a ring or horseshoe shaped atoll.
Définition : Gravel is an environmental material which is composed of pieces of rock that are at least two millimeters (2mm) in its largest dimension and no more than 75 millimeters.
Définition : Direct developers are characterized by young that resemble the adult form even in early stages of development. The larval stages of marine direct developers generally have very low dispersal potential.
Définition : Lecithotrophic larvae are provided with a source of nutrition to use during their dispersal, usually a yolk sac. They generally have greater dispersal potential than direct developers, but short pelagic larval durations relative to planktotrophic larvae.
Définition : Planktotrophic species generally have fairly long pelagic larval durations and feed while in the water column. Consequentially, they have the potential to disperse long distances.
Définition : Eye-spots which may be set into a pit to reduce the angles of light that enters, to allow the organism to deduce the angle of incoming light. Lens-like structures may be present, but stemmata, unlike lens eyes, cannot form an image, either for lack of refractive power or retinal resolution.