Primary data of the manuscript from Dormant plasticity of rotifer diapausing eggs in response to predator kairomones

In freshwater ecosystems, hatching strategy of diapausing eggs (DEs) under predation risk has important ecological implication for zooplankters. Although kairomones released by predators can induce phenotypic responses of prey, hatching patterns of DEs in response to kairomones have received contradictory conclusions in zooplankters. Maternal environment may also affect hatching strategy of DEs during predator–prey interactions. We used classical <i>Brachionus calyciflorus</i>–<i>Asplanchna</i> models to determine the timing and proportion of diapausing-egg hatching in association with parental and embryonic exposure to kairomones. Results obtained from two <i>Brachionus</i> clones supported the hypothesis that DEs could detect <i>Asplanchna</i> kairomones and adjust hatching patterns. DEs showed early and synchronous hatching patterns in the environment with kairomones. Data also supported the prediction that DEs could gain information about predators from maternal environments and adjusted their hatching pattern in response to the presence of kairomones. Compared with DEs from <i>Brachionus</i> mothers not exposed to kairomones, DEs produced by mothers experienced kairomones attained a higher hatching rate when both of them hatched in the environment either with kairomones or not. Our results suggest that DEs of <i>B</i>. <i>calyciflorus</i> possess dormant plasticity to defend against predation from <i>Asplanchna</i>, which may be regulated by maternal environmental effects during sexual life cycles.