Latitudinal differentiation in copepod growth: an adaptation to temperature.

There is significant differentiation in development rate, adult body length, and somatic growth rate in the estuarine harpacticoid copepod Scottolana canadensis collected from a broad range of latitudes (27-43oN) and reared for several generations under the same conditions (15g salts per 1000g seawater, and 15o, 20o, 25o or 28oC). The changing pattern of differential growth with increased temperature suggests local adaptation to maximize scope for growth under prevailing temperature conditions; northern-derived individuals grew faster at low but not at high temperatures.- Authors