Polyplacophora |
Chitonida |
Chitonidae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Benthic; depth range 0 - 4 m (Ref. 2022). Tropical
Western Central Atlantic: USA, Colombia, Bermuda, Mexico, Venezuela and the West Indies.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm Max length : 7.6 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 281)
Valve color: Dull grayish green or greenish brown; Some valves, dark-brown arrow-shaped patch on the dorsal ridge. Lateral areas: Five irregular, radiating cords. Central areas: Smooth at the top and eight to nine strong, wavy, longitudinal ribs on the sides. Girdle color: Alternating zones of whitish, green or black. Scales: Appear to be slightly higher than broad (Ref. 281).
Epibiotic (Ref. 110502). Very common under rocks, in the zone between tides (Ref. 292); intertidal to shallow subtidal (Ref. 289); intertidal and spray zones of rocky shores (Ref. 2022).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Members of the class Polyplacophora are mostly gonochoric. Life cycle: Eggs hatch into lecitotrophic planktonic trocophore larvae (no veliger stage) which later metamorphose and settle on the bottom as young adults.
Burghardt, G. and L. Burghardt 2006 Selected Chitons of Caribbean Area and the East Coast of United States and Canada. A Gallery of Worlwide Chitons: http://home.inreach.com/burghart/eastcoas.html[accessed20/01/06] (Ref. 281)
IUCN Red List Status
(Ref. 130435: Version 2025-1)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Not Evaluated
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Human uses
| FishSource |
Tools
More information
Trophic EcologyFood items (preys)Diet compositionFood consumptionPredators Population dynamicsGrowth
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Abundance
Life cycleReproductionMaturityFecunditySpawningEggsEgg developmentLarvae PhysiologyOxygen consumption
Human RelatedStamps, coins, misc.
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature
(Ref.
115969): 25.8 - 28.3, mean 27.5 (based on 436 cells).
Fishing Vulnerability
Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
Price category
Unknown.