Feeding history shapes food handling behaviors of larval urchin Heliocidaris crassispina

When kept in environment devoid of food for 24 hours or more, 6-arm larvae filled up their stomachs significantly faster than those that were fasted for 4 hours, regardless of their previous exposure to microplastics. Larvae reared on a half-food, half-plastic beads diet held onto the plastic particles collected in their stomachs longer than their counterparts fed only with algae. Our study illustrated that food handling in these small planktonic individuals is a highly dynamic process: both long term and short term feeding history could shape subsequent particles handling, and consequently, efficiency of nutrient acquisition.