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Mollusca
Mollusca is a phylum of protostome, protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant taxon, extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The number of additional fossil species is estimated between 60,000 and 100,000, and the proportion of undescribed species is very high. Many taxa remain poorly studied. Molluscs are the largest marine biology, marine phylum, comprising about 23% of all the named marine organisms. They are highly diverse, not just in size and anatomical structure, but also in behaviour and habitat, as numerous groups are freshwater mollusc, freshwater and even terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial species. The phylum is typically divided into 7 or 8 taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class (biology), classes, of which two are entirely extinct. Cephalopod molluscs, such as squid, cuttlefish, and octopuses, are among the most neurobiology, neurologi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cephalopoda
A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda ( Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head, and a set of arms or tentacles ( muscular hydrostats) modified from the primitive molluscan foot. Fishers sometimes call cephalopods "inkfish", referring to their common ability to squirt ink. The study of cephalopods is a branch of malacology known as teuthology. Cephalopods became dominant during the Ordovician period, represented by primitive nautiloids. The class now contains two, only distantly related, extant subclasses: Coleoidea, which includes octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish; and Nautiloidea, represented by ''Nautilus'' and ''Allonautilus''. In the Coleoidea, the molluscan shell has been internalized or is absent, whereas in the Nautiloidea, the external shell remains. About 800 living species of cephalopods have been iden ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scaphopoda
Scaphopoda (plural scaphopods , from Ancient Greek σκᾰ́φης ''skáphē'' "boat" and πούς ''poús'' "foot"), whose members are also known as tusk shells or tooth shells, are a class of shelled marine invertebrates belonging to the phylum Mollusca with worldwide distribution and are the only class of exclusively infaunal marine molluscs. Shells of species within this class range in length (with ''Fissidentalium metivieri'' as the longest). Members of the order Dentaliida tend to be larger than those of the order Gadilida. These molluscs live in soft substrates offshore (usually not intertidally). Because of this subtidal habitat and the small size of most species, many beachcombers are unfamiliar with them; their shells are not as common or as easily visible in the beach drift as the shells of sea snails and clams. Molecular data suggest that the scaphopods are a sister group to the cephalopods, although higher-level molluscan phylogeny remains unresolved. Cl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Solenogastres
The Solenogastres (less often referred to as Neomeniomorpha), common name, commonly known as solenogasters, are a class of small, worm-like, shell-less Mollusca, molluscs (Aplacophora), the other class being the Caudofoveata (Chaetodermomorpha).MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Solenogastres. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=2094 on 2021-04-14 Some recent literature and recent molecular evidence, indicates that the Aplacophora may be polyphyletic, and therefore some taxonomists may divide Solenogastres and Caudofoveata into separate classes. Morphology In contrast to many other mollusc classes, aplacophorans have no shell, and are instead covered by aragonite, aragonitic sclerites (calcareous wikt:spicule, spicules), which can be solid or hollow. These spicules can be arranged perpendicular to one another within the cuticle to form a skeleton, stick up to form a palisade, or can lie flat against th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halkieriidae
The halkieriids are a group of fossil organisms from the Lower to Middle Cambrian. Their eponymous genus is ''Halkieria'' , which has been found on almost every continent in Lower to Mid Cambrian deposits, forming a large component of the small shelly fossil assemblages. The best known species is ''Halkieria evangelista'', from the North Greenland Sirius Passet Lagerstätte, in which complete specimens were collected on an expedition in 1989. The fossils were described by Simon Conway Morris and John Peel in a short paper in 1990 in the journal ''Nature (journal), Nature''. Later a more thorough description was undertaken in 1995 in the journal ''Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London'' and wider evolutionary implications were posed. The group is sometimes equated to Sachitida, although as originally envisaged, this group includes the wiwaxiids and is thus equivalent to the Halwaxiida. History of discovery Armor plates called "sclerites" had long been known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halwaxiida
Halwaxiida or halwaxiids is a proposed clade equivalent to the older orders Sachitida He 1980 and Thambetolepidea Jell 1981, loosely uniting scale-bearing Cambrian animals, which may lie in the stem group to molluscs or lophotrochozoa. Some palaeontologists question the validity of the Halwaxiida clade. Definition and members The name "halwaxiid" was formed by combining the names of two members of the proposed group, '' Halkieria'' and '' Wiwaxia''. The group was defined as a set of Early to Mid Cambrian animals that had: a "chain mail" coat of three concentric bands of small armor plates that are called sclerites; in some cases, a small cap-like shell at the front end and in some cases both ends. Some scientists are unhappy with this loose definition, arguing that such traits may have arisen convergently rather than being inherited from a common ancestor. This objection implies that the group may not be monophyletic, and that their similarities are not biologically equivale ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monoplacophora
Shell of Monoplacophora Monoplacophora , meaning "bearing one plate", is a polyphyletic class of molluscs with a cap-like shell, inhabiting deep sea environments. Extant representatives were not recognized as such until 1952; previously they were known only from the fossil record, and were thought to have become extinct 375 million years ago. Although the shell of many monoplacophorans is limpet-like in shape, they are not gastropods, nor do they have any close relation to gastropods. Definition Discussion about monoplacophorans is made difficult by the slippery definition of the taxon; some authors take it to refer to all non-gastropod molluscs with a single shell, or all single-shelled molluscs with serially repeated units; whereas other workers restrict the definition to cap-shaped forms, excluding spiral and other shapes of shell. The inclusion of the gastropod-like Bellerophontoidea within the group is also contentious. One attempt to resolve this confusion was to separ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dentalium (genus)
''Dentalium'' is a large genus of tooth shells or tusk shells, marine scaphopod molluscs in the family Dentaliidae. The genus contains 50 described species and about 50 extinct species.MolluscaBase eds. (2020). MolluscaBase. Dentalium Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137886 on 2020-10-19 Etymology The scientific name of this genus comes from the Latin word ''dentis'', meaning ''tooth'', based on the tooth or tusk-shaped form of these molluscs. Description The mantle of ''Dentalium'' species is entirely within the shell. The foot extends from the larger end of the shell, and is used to burrow through the substrate. They position their head down in the substrate, with the apical end of the shell (at the rear of the animal's body) projecting up into the water. These molluscs live on seafloor sediment, feeding on microscopic organisms, detritus and foraminiferans. The shells are conical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Conchifera
Conchifera is a subphylum of the phylum Mollusca, containing five extant classes: Monoplacophora, Cephalopoda, Gastropoda, Bivalvia, and Scaphopoda. Conchiferans can bear a single shell as in snails and ammonites, a single pair of shells as in clams, or lack a shell as in slugs and squid A squid (: squid) is a mollusc with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight cephalopod limb, arms, and two tentacles in the orders Myopsida, Oegopsida, and Bathyteuthida (though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also .... The other subphylum is Aculifera, the members of which are shellless or have a row of several plates. Non-monoplacophoran conchiferans emerged within the once-widespread Monoplacophora. The only descendant which retains its ancestral shape is the Tryblidiida. The monophyly of Conchifera is supported by molecular phylogenetic analysis. The relationships among the members of Conchifera are disputed. A grouping of Scaphopoda and Bivalv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orthozanclus
''Orthrozanclus'' (from Greek + ( + ), "dawn scythe") is a genus of sea creatures known from two species, ''O. reburrus'' from the Middle Cambrian (~) Burgess shale and ''O. elongata'' from Early Cambrian (~) Maotianshan Shales. Animals in this genus were one to two centimeters long, with spikes protruding from their armored bodies. The placement of this genus into a specific family is not universally accepted. History of discovery Jean-Bernard Caron and Donald A. Jackson found a specimen in the Burgess Shale and in 2006 referred to it as "scleritomorph C" without a detailed description. In 2007 Caron and Simon Conway Morris published a description and named the fossil ''Orthrozanclus reburrus''. The genus name means "Dawn scythe" and derives from Greek, with the species name meaning "bristling hair" in Latin. The two known specimens of ''O. elongata'' were discovered from Maotianshan Shales, Maotianshan Shale in 2015 and 2016 and formally described the following year. Descrip ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ruditapes Philippinarum
''Ruditapes philippinarum'', the Manila clam, is an edible species of saltwater clam in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams. Common names include Manila clam, Japanese littleneck clam, Japanese cockle, and Japanese carpet shell.Cohen, A.N. 2011''Venerupis philippinarum''.The Exotics Guide: Non-native Marine Species of the North American Pacific Coast. Center for Research on Aquatic Bioinvasions, Richmond, California, and San Francisco Estuary Institute, Oakland, California. Revised September 2011. In Japan, it is known as ''asari''. In Korea, it is known as ''bajirak''. The clam is commercially harvested, and is the second most important bivalvia, bivalve grown in aquaculture worldwide.Cordero, D., et alPopulation genetics of the Manila clam (Ruditapes philippinarum) introduced in North America and Europe.''Scientific Reports'' 7, Article number: 39745. 3 January 2017. Description The shell of ''Ruditapes philippinarum'' is elongate, oval, and sculptured with radiating ribs.Mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tonicella Lineata
''Tonicella lineata'', commonly known as the lined chiton, is a species of chiton from the North Pacific. Size and description ''Tonicella lineata'' is a very colorful chiton, having blue, purple or black straight or zig-zag lines on each of the eight valves. The background color of the valves is often brown or red, but can also be bright blue or yellow to orange. The girdle is hairless and brown to red or pink, often with regular yellow or white patches. This species grows to 5 cm in length. Similar species '' Tonicella lokii'' is extremely similar but has radiating bands on the girdle. '' Tonicella undocaerulea'' is very similar but lacks a dark border to the concentric blue lines on the anterior plate. '' Mopalia spectabilis'' looks superficially similar due to its bright blue wavy lines on the valves, but has a hairy girdle.Baldwin, A. (2007). Illustrated Keys to the chitons (Polyplacophora). Accessed from: It can also be confused with '' Tonicella insignis'' ( Reeve, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wiwaxia
''Wiwaxia'' is a genus of soft-bodied animals that were covered in carbonaceous scales and spines that protected it from predators. ''Wiwaxia'' fossils—mainly isolated scales, but sometimes complete, articulated fossils—are known from early Cambrian and middle Cambrian fossil deposits across the globe. The living animal would have measured up to when fully grown, although a range of juvenile specimens are known, the smallest being long. ''Wiwaxia'' affinity has been a matter of debate: Researchers were long split between two possibilities. On the one hand, its rows of scales looked superficially similar to certain scale worms (annelids); conversely, its mouthparts and general morphology suggested a relationship to the shell-less molluscs. More recently, evidence for a molluscan affinity has been accumulating, based on new details of ''Wiwaxia'' mouthparts, scales, and growth history. The name derives from Wiwaxy Peak in British Columbia. The proposed clade Halwaxiida con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
