Hatching and earliest larval stages of the priapulid worm Priapulus caudatus

Here we describe the hatching and morphology of the earliest larval stages of the priapulid worm Priapulus caudatus for the first time. The hatching larva differs considerably from previously described larvae not only in its general body shape but also in its lack of a proper lorica including the typical lorica tubuli. Furthermore, no mouth opening or pharyngeal teeth have formed as yet, and the number and arrangement of scalids differ from that of later larvae. The hatching larva molts and emerges as the first lorica larva. This larva partially resembles earlier described lorica larvae, but there are a number of important differences; the first lorica larva is smaller, and the mouth opening as well as pharyngeal teeth are still yet to form. The second lorica larva is equipped with four rings of pharyngeal teeth; it shows striking similarity to the previously described larva of P. caudatus, i.e., the larva-type 2, only differing in the scalid pattern. We conclude that the first two larval stages of P. caudatus have not been described previously. We suggest that discrepancies between the earliest lorica larvae described here and in earlier publications might depend on sub-speciation or ecophenotypic modification of larvae collected from different localities. Our findings highlight the importance of studying the development of non-model organisms such as priapulids under controlled laboratory conditions.