Photographic identification guide to larvae at hydrothermal vents

We would like to announce the publication of a “Photographic Identification Guide to Larvae at Hydrothermal Vents,” available online at: http://www.whoi.edu/vent-larval-id/, as a PDF (click for high resolution 30 MB, or low resolution 3 MB), or by request as a hard copy. The purpose of the guide is to assist researchers in the identification of larvae of benthic invertebrates at hydrothermal vents. The guide is based mainly on plankton sampling at the East Pacific Rise (EPR) 9-10°N vent field from 1991 - present. The guide includes an “Introduction and Methods” section that details the collection of larvae, a section on “Terminology” for gastropod and polychaete larvae, and “Literature Cited” for descriptions of species. The guide is divided into sections for Gastropoda, Bivalvia, Polychaeta, Arthropoda, and other miscellaneous taxa. Each species information page also includes thumbnail images of species that are similar in appearance. Although sampling was limited to EPR 9-10°N, the guide is useful to researchers working in other areas, since a number of the species range from 21°N to the southern EPR, and some have congeners in other chemosynthetic environments, e.g., Lepetodrilus (Juan de Fuca Ridge, Mid-Atlantic Ridge, wood falls), and Bathymodiolus (Mid-Atlantic Ridge, seeps). The authors would like to expand the guide by including additional species from other areas, and they welcome contributions from the ChEss and InterRidge community [please contact Susan Mills (smills@whoi.edu) or Stace Beaulieu (stace@whoi.edu)].