Bu makale, laboratuvarda yetifltirilen Menaethiops nodulosus’un (Nobili, 1905) larval geliflimiflle ilgilidir. Menaethiops cinsi, Indo-Pacific bölgesinden baflta M. bicornis Alcock, 1985 olmak üzere 12 tür ile temsil edilmektedir. Daha sonra, Pakistan’›n deniz faunas›na iki tür, M. gadaniensis Kazmi & Tirmizi ile M. nodulosus (Nobili), eklenmitir. Yumurta tafl›yan difli olan bir M. nodulosus örne¤i 28 Ekim 1996 tarihinde toplanm›flt›r. Prezoealar ile ilk zoealar 13 Kas›m 1996 tarihinde elde edilmifl ve ilk zoealar ilerideki deney için ayr›lm›flt›r. Bu tür, megalopa evresine geçmeden önce iki zoea evresinden geçmektedir. Yumurtadan ç›k›fltan megalopa evresine geçiç süresi, oda s›cakl›¤›nda (27º-28ºC) ve dopalanm›fl, filtre edilmifl, salinitesi 35-37%, pH de¤eri 7.9 olan deniz suyunda 9 gündür. Menaethiops nodulosus’un larva evrelerinin resimleriyle birlikte tan›mlar› bildi¤imiz kadar›yla bu raporda ilk kez olarak verilmektedir. M. nodulosus zoealar›, laboratuvarda yetiflen majid yengeçlerinin zoealar›yla karfl›laflt›r›lm›flt›r. M. birconis (yay›mlanmam›fl), Achaeus lacertosus Stimpson 1858, Schiszophyrys aspera (H. Milne Edwards, 2845) ve Micippa platipes Rüppell, 1830.

The present paper is based on the larval development of a spider crab Menaethiops nodulosus (Nobili, 1905) reared in the laboratory. The genus Menaethiops is represented by twelve species from Indo-Pacific regions including M. bicornis Alcock, 1895. Later two more species M. gadaniensis Kazmi & Tirmizi and M. nodulosus (Nobili) were added to the marine fauna of Pakistan. The ovigerous female of M. nodulosus was collected from Buleji on October 28, 1996, prezoeae and first zoeae were obtained on November 13, 1996 and the first zoeae were segregated for further experiment. This species passes through two zoeal stages before moulting to megalopa. The duration from hatching to megalopa is 9 days at room temperature (27º-28ºC) in stored, filtered seawater of a salinity of 35-37 parts per thousand and pH 7.9. The larval stages of Menaethiops nodulosus are described along with their illustrations for the first time to our knowledge. The zoeae of M. nodulosus are compared with the laboratory reared zoeae of majid crabs: M. bicornis (unpublished), Achaeus lacertosus Stimpson 1858, Schizophrys aspera (H. Milne Edwards, 1834) and Micippa platipes Rüppell, 1830.