To our knowledge, this study is the first to describe the complete loss
of these gastric mill ossicles within the stomach at molting for a species
of decapod crustacean. It seems likely that this phenomenon applies to
many other species of decapod. The investment in decapods used for
growth and ageing studies that are successfully reared and that molt
in captivity, may be a reasonwhy fewstudies have sacrificed individuals
directly aftermolting. Though Huner et al. (1978) present a studywhere
captive subadult red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) were
sacrificed at the following postmolt intervals: 0, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h.
The study investigated calcification of the exoskeleton following
molting. If P. clarkii also lose these ossicles within their stomach at
molting, it seems the stomach contents of the individuals sacrificed
were either not analysed, or the presence of lost ossicles within the
stomach was simply not described in publication. It may be the case
that this phenomenon of ossicle loss is limited to a minority of decapod
species including N. norvegicus and A. pallipes. Chaisemartin (1967) and
Greenaway (1985) states that following molting, crustaceans cannot
commence feeding until the animal has recalcified the mouthparts
and stomach ossicles to process food,with the former study referring directly
to A. pallipes. It has never been clearly stated that themesocardiac,
zygocardiac, and pterocardiac ossicles of a species of decapod crustacean
need to be recalcified postmolt. These references to the
recalcification of stomach ossicles most likely refer to the individual's