Development of the eggs and larvae of the pike eel,Muraenesox cinereus

Embryonic and larval development of the pike eel,Muraenesox cinereus, are described following natural fertilization in the laboratory. Eggs are pelagic and spherical with diameters from 1.8 to 2.1 mm and have a colorless, transparent chorion and numerous oil globules. Hatching occurs 36 hours after spawning at a water temperature of 25°C. Newly-hatched larvae are 5.8 mm in mean TL, and the number of myomeres averages 86. Absorption of the yolk is completed 8 days after hatching, at 9–10 mm TL. Larvae survive for 10 days without food supply. At this time they are 11.2 mm in mean TL and have 97 + 55=152 myomeres, which is a diagnostic character of this species. They have large eyes and well-developed jaws with sharp teeth.