The Function of Chemo- and Mechanoreceptors in Lobster (homarus Americanus) Feeding Behaviour
نویسندگان
چکیده
The behaviour of lobsters preying on live mussels (Mytilus edulis) was observed before and after chemosensory or chemosensory-mechanosensory deafferentation of different sensory appendages. Deafferentation of the antennules, leg tips, or maxillipeds (but not the carapace or proximal leg segments) interfered with feeding performance by causing an increase in the time necessary to crush a mussel after search initiation. In addition, deafferentation of the leg tips or the maxillipeds caused a decline in number of mussels crushed but for different reasons: leg-treated lobsters walked over the mussels without picking them up, whereas maxilliped-treated lobsters grasped the mussels as usual but either did not crush or did not eat them as readily as did normal lobsters. Deafferentation of leg chemoreceptors resulted in the same behavioural deficiencies as deafferentation of leg chemoand mechanoreceptors, demonstrating that it is the leg chemoreceptors that are essential in releasing this grasping response. Chemoreceptors on different appendages of lobsters therefore fulfill different functional roles in their feeding behaviour.
منابع مشابه
Daily Rhythms of PERIOD protein in the eyestalk of the American lobster, Homarus americanus.
The daily rhythm of PERIOD protein (PER) expression is an integral component of the circadian clock, which is found among a broad range of animal species including fruit flies, marine mollusks and even humans. The use of antibodies directed against PER has provided a helpful tool in the discovery of PER homologues and the labeling of putative pacemaker cells, especially in animals for which an ...
متن کاملThe olfactory pathway for individual recognition in the American lobster Homarus americanus.
Individual recognition in the lobster Homarus americanus (Milne-Edwards), is based on detection of urine pheromones via chemoreceptors of the lateral antennular flagellum. The specific sensory pathway mediating this recognition is not known. Most of the chemoreceptor cells of this flagellum are found in the unimodal aesthetasc sensilla and project specifically to the glomeruli of the olfactory ...
متن کاملBait and the susceptibility of American lobsters Homarus americanus to epizootic shell disease.
Shell disease (SD) has been observed in lobster populations for almost a hundred years, but recently, rates of an epizootic form of shell disease (ESD) have increased in the southern New England (USA) area. A large proportion of fish in the diet of American lobsters Homarus americanus has been linked to increased rates of SD. Therefore, the use of fish as lobster bait may be linked to increased...
متن کاملGross Dissection of the Stomach of the Lobster, Homarus Americanus
The stomach of the American lobster (Homarus americanus) is located in the cephalothorax, between the rostrum and the cervical groove. The anterior end of the stomach is defined by the mouth opening and the posterior end by the bottom of the pylorus. Along the dorsal side of the stomach lies the stomatogastric nervous system (STNS). This nervous system, which contains rhythmic networks that und...
متن کاملTemperature and acid-base balance in the American lobster Homarus americanus.
Lobsters (Homarus americanus) in the wild inhabit ocean waters where temperature can vary over a broad range (0-25 degrees C). To examine how environmental thermal variability might affect lobster physiology, we examine the effects of temperature and thermal change on the acid-base status of the lobster hemolymph. Total CO(2), pH, P(CO)2 and HCO(-)(3) were measured in hemolymph sampled from lob...
متن کامل