Physiology of Artemia spp
Belonging to the phylum Arthropoda and genus Artemia, the spp survives in intense ecological settings thus salty waters. Artemia is just about 12mm in span and has a comparatively slender segmented body. “The known species of Artemia include A. salina, A. sinica, A. franciscana, A. spp and A.nauplii” (Smithyman & Kalman 20). It is worth acknowledging that Artemia is known for its dietetic input to aquatic life, in particular fish breeding, since it is fish food.
The Artemia spp and other arthropods own unrestricted blood vascular; consequently, their coelom is abridged to a great extent (Brine). They own tubular heart restricted in the sinus, and is dorsal in nature thus enables efficient blood gush inside the grills (Smithyman & Kalman 20). The respiratory coordination consists of a porous facade made up of phyllopod. The osmotic regulation process and activities take place at the maxillary glands, and these critical features are positioned in the subsequent maxilla. It is crucial to note that the sensory organization of these organisms encompasses naupliar eye, general in the larval point, and two compound eyes which develop later in their lives.
Consequently, there are three stain cups which are black in nature, but depends on the environment inhabited by the organism. The behavior of Artemia is characterized by steady swimming by means of phyllopodous which is an attachment in the thorax. The waves of motion created draw food and water into the channels responsible for receiving food. Artemia spp frequently swim dorsum up, but can also conform to swimming right side up (Brine).
Stimulus Detection
Most arthropods possess compound eyes, so does Artemia, which are extra perceptive to light even at abridged intensities. ‘These species usually bear a couple of stalk sideways compound eyes and a mono-central naupliar eye at the frontal end’ (Smithyman & Kalman 21). The Artemia spp makes use of compound eyes as the light perceptive organ to distinguish any magnitude of light in its neighboring. Their eyes are made up of barrel shaped compilation of amenable elements known as photoreceptors. The eye mechanisms receive the light and accordingly transmit them into the rhabdomere, which is the hub of photoreceptor compilation (Brine).
This site contains reactive microvilli, which amplify the, surface region thus escalating the quantity of visual coloring in the cell. The microvilli are parallel to their own axis thus resulting into open photo-receptors able to polarize light vacillations. The signals travel to the brain and consequently into other body parts to bring a response.
Response to Light
All eyes of Artemia are responsive to light and exhibit exceedingly changeable reactions to any luminosity around them. This group of arthropod is photo-tactic at diminished light intensities; consequently, they are photonegative at amplified light intensities. Response to light shows a discrepancy depending on the physiological situation of the animal, pH and other factors like development and metabolism. Most arthropods’ reaction to light is known as dorsal light response characterized by sustaining dorsal plane up. In contrary to other arthropods, Artemia spp has repeal retort by keeping their ventral facade pointing light.
Consequently, Artemia spp usually spins in invalidate position because light is sensibly above the water surface. The nauplii, which are products of hutching eggs possess single eye, but develop other two secondary eyes later. It is evident that this eye can only sense the presence of light; furthermore, it is capable of detecting the course of light. In contrary to the adult Artemia, nauplii usually swim towards the light until it develops the two secondary vision sites. Light plays a critical role in the life cycle of Artemia because it acts as a diapause breaker and in the hatching of eggs (Beardmore, Abatzzopoulos, Clegg & Sergeloos 4).
The cysts utilize light to synthesize glycerol, which is essential, in their development. It is noted that light enhances respiration; furthermore, it is associated with metabolism of trehalose or tremalose which is a shielding agent against dryness or osmotic distress. Their feeding habits suggest that it prefers dark places.
Works Cited
Beardmore, John. Abatzzopoulos, John. Clegg, Trotman. & Sergeloos, Patrick. Artemia: basic and applied biology. The Netherlands Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2002. Print.
Brine, Shrimp. Invertebrate Anatomy Online: Artemia franciscana, Lander University. 2006. Web.
Smithyman, Kathryn. & Kalman, Bobbie. What is an Arthropod? New York: Crabtree Publishing Company, 2002. Print.