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Clione Antarctica
''Clione antarctica'' is a species of "sea angel", a sea slug, a pelagic marine gastropod mollusk in the family Clionidae, the "sea angels". Distribution The distribution of ''Clione antarctica'' is within the Southern Hemisphere, in the polar waters of Antarctica. Rudman, W. B. (11 January 2006)"''Clione antarctica'' (Smith, 1902)" Sea Slug Forum. accessed 2 February 2011. Description The body length of this species is . Ecology ''Clione antarctica'' is an important component of polar ecosystems. It preys upon ''Limacina antarctica'' It is itself eaten by the medusa ''Diplulmaris antarctica''. ''C. antarctica'' has a large lipid storage capacity: up to 5% of its wet mass.. It is able to survive without food for about six months by utilizing these lipid storage reserves. ''Clione antarctica'' lays eggs in the spring. This species defends itself from predators by synthesizing an ichthyodeterrent (a chemical that deters fishes); this is a previously unknown molecule cal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sea Slug
Sea slug is a common name for some marine invertebrates with varying levels of resemblance to terrestrial slugs. Most creatures known as sea slugs are gastropods, i.e. they are sea snails (marine gastropod mollusks) that over evolutionary time have either completely lost their shells, or have seemingly lost their shells due to having a greatly reduced or internal shell. The name "sea slug" is most often applied to nudibranchs, as well as to a paraphyletic set of other marine gastropods without obvious shells. Sea slugs have an enormous variation in body shape, color, and size. Most are partially translucent. The often bright colors of reef-dwelling species implies that these animals are under constant threat of predators, but the color can serve as a warning to other animals of the sea slug's toxic stinging cells (nematocysts) or offensive taste. Like all gastropods, they have small, razor-sharp teeth, called radulas. Most sea slugs have a pair of rhinophores—sensory te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pelagic
The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean, and can be further divided into regions by depth (as illustrated on the right). The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or water column between the surface of the sea and the bottom. Conditions in the water column change with depth: pressure increases; temperature and light decrease; salinity, oxygen, micronutrients (such as iron, magnesium and calcium) all change. Marine life is affected by bathymetry (underwater topography) such as the seafloor, shoreline, or a submarine seamount, as well as by proximity to the boundary between the ocean and the atmosphere at the ocean surface, which brings light for photosynthesis, predation from above, and wind stirring up waves and setting currents in motion. The pelagic zone refers to the open, free waters away from the shore, where marine life can swim freely in any direction unhindered by topographical constraints. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marine (ocean)
The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the world ocean is conventionally divided."Ocean." ''Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary'', Merriam-Webster, |
Gastropod
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. There are many thousands of species of sea snails and slugs, as well as freshwater snails, freshwater limpets, and land snails and slugs. The class Gastropoda contains a vast total of named species, second only to the insects in overall number. The fossil history of this class goes back to the Late Cambrian. , 721 families of gastropods are known, of which 245 are extinct and appear only in the fossil record, while 476 are currently extant with or without a fossil record. Gastropoda (previously known as univalves and sometimes spelled "Gasteropoda") are a major part of the phylum Mollusca, and are the most highly diversified class in the phylum, with 65,000 to 80,000 living snail and slug species. The anatomy, behavior, feeding, and re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mollusk
Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is estimated between 60,000 and 100,000 additional species. The proportion of undescribed species is very high. Many taxa remain poorly studied. Molluscs are the largest marine phylum, comprising about 23% of all the named marine organisms. Numerous molluscs also live in freshwater and terrestrial habitats. They are highly diverse, not just in size and anatomical structure, but also in behaviour and habitat. The phylum is typically divided into 7 or 8 taxonomic classes, of which two are entirely extinct. Cephalopod molluscs, such as squid, cuttlefish, and octopuses, are among the most neurologically advanced of all invertebrates—and either the giant squid or the colossal squid is the largest known invertebrate species. The gas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clionidae
The Clionidae are a family of sea angels, which are a group of pelagic marine gastropods. They resemble angels, complete with flapping "wings", hence their common name. They are gelatinous, mostly transparent pteropods, and they only have shells in their embryonic stage. They are mostly very small, with the largest species (''Clione limacina'') reaching . External anatomy The Clionidae use winglike flaps for rhythmical locomotion, as if flying in the sea. These "wings" are attached to the anterior part of the body. The posterior part is gelatinous and mostly transparent. The orange visceral sac is confined to the anterior part. Life habits Mating is carried out ventrally for mutual fertilization. The following spring, this results in a free-floating, gelatinous egg mass. Taxonomy Clionidae d'Orbigny, 1851 is unfortunately also the name of a family of sponges in the order Hadromerida, class Demospongiae. Within the ICZN there has been a proposed emendation of spelling to Cl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William B
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of England in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is sometimes abbreviated "Wm." Shortened familiar versions in English include Will, Wills, Willy, Willie, Bill, and Billy. A common Irish form is Liam. Scottish diminutives include Wull, Willie or Wullie (as in Oor Wullie or the play ''Douglas''). Female forms are Willa, Willemina, Wilma and Wilhelmina. Etymology William is related to the given name ''Wilhelm'' (cf. Proto-Germanic ᚹᛁᛚᛃᚨᚺᛖᛚᛗᚨᛉ, ''*Wiljahelmaz'' > German ''Wilhelm'' and Old Norse ᚢᛁᛚᛋᛅᚼᛅᛚᛘᛅᛋ, ''Vilhjálmr''). By regular sound changes, the native, inherited English form of the name should b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the system through photosynthesis and is incorporated into plant tissue. By feeding on plants and on one another, animals play an important role in the movement of matter and energy through the system. They also influence the quantity of plant and microbial biomass present. By breaking down dead organic matter, decomposers release carbon back to the atmosphere and facilitate nutrient cycling by converting nutrients stored in dead biomass back to a form that can be readily used by plants and microbes. Ecosystems are controlled by external and internal factors. External factors such as climate, parent material which forms the soil and topography, control the overall structure of an ecosystem but are not themselves influenced by the ecosystem. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Limacina Antarctica
''Limacina rangii'' is a species of swimming sea snail in the family Limacinidae,Bouchet, P. (2014). Limacina rangii (d'Orbigny, 1834). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=719583 on 2015-01-24 which belong to the group commonly known as sea butterflies (Thecosomata). ''Limacina rangii'' is a keystone species of the mesozooplankton of Antarctic pelagic ecosystems. Until 2010 this taxon was known only as ''Limacina helicina antarctica'' or as ''Limacina helicina'' f. ''antarctica''. ''Limacina rangii'' is however now considered to be a separate species from ''Limacina helicina'', based on cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene sequences. Distribution The distribution of ''Limacina rangii'' is circumglobal south of 50°S. This species occurs in the Weddell Sea and Ross Sea in the Antarctic and in Cumberland Bay, South Georgia. and other localities in the Southern Ocean. Description ''Limacina ran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medusa (biology)
Jellyfish and sea jellies are the informal common names given to the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animals with umbrella-shaped bells and trailing tentacles, although a few are anchored to the seabed by stalks rather than being mobile. The bell can pulsate to provide propulsion for highly efficient locomotion. The tentacles are armed with stinging cells and may be used to capture prey and defend against predators. Jellyfish have a complex life cycle; the medusa is normally the sexual phase, which produces planula larvae that disperse widely and enter a sedentary polyp phase before reaching sexual maturity. Jellyfish are found all over the world, from surface waters to the deep sea. Scyphozoans (the "true jellyfish") are exclusively marine, but some hydrozoans with a similar appearance live in freshwater. Large, often colorful, jellyfish are common in coa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diplulmaris Antarctica
''Diplulmaris antarctica'' is a species of Antarctic jellyfish in the family Ulmaridae. Description This species grows up to in diameter. ''Diplulmaris antarctica'' has 16 - 48 laterally compressed, white tentacles and a white frontal lobe. It has reddish-orange stomach gastrodermis and frilled oral arms of the same colour. This jellyfish is normally infested with '' Hyperiella dilatata''. These hyperiid amphipods appear as white dots on the surface of the bell, and do not appear to eat the medusa. Diet ''Diplulmaris antarctica'' feeds on copepods, euphausiid larvate, medusae, ctenophore, fish larvae, and molluscan pteropods such as ''Clione antarctica'' and ''Limacina antarctica''.Larson R. J. & Harbison G. R. (1990). "Medusae from Mcmurdo Sound, Ross Sea including the descriptions of two new species, ''Leuckartiara brownei'' and ''Benthocodon hyalinus''". ''Polar Biology'' 11(1): 19-25. . Distribution This species is found in Antarctica including the Antarctic Peninsula ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
