The Flamingo Tongue snail is common on many Caribbean and Atlantic coral
reefs. It feeds on toxic sea fans and it is designed to eat the flesh of
gorgonians(including the sea fan.)
The scientific name of the Flamingo Tongue snail is Cyphoma gibbosum, and
they belong to the phylum Mollusca, that contains octopus and oysters.
"Flamingo-Tongue Snail.” Flamingo -Tongue Snail. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2015.
The author of the source states that the snail is specialized in eating gorgonians since
they have a rasp-like tongue (called radula) to scrape away the coral tissue and they
live on these sea fans. They leave behind the gorgonian skeletons and the tongue
never graze their food to death. Sometimes they leave their current gorgonian
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The snail deposits the chemicals in its flamboyant/colorful mantle (soft
skin that extends from its foot to cover the shell). The Flamingo Tongue Snail stores
the venom in its tissues to protect the itself from predators. The snail do that because
it makes them have its unpleasant taste so that predators would stay away from them. The shell of the snail is actually white and the striking color pattern is produced
by the living animal inside. The Flamingo Tongue Snail actually have the shell inside
the skin, since the skin covers the shell. "Flamingo Tongue Snail." Science. N.p., n.d.
Web. 16 Dec. 2015. According to the site, these gastropods’ (mollusks like snails) skin
helps the snail absorb oxygen, release carbon dioxide, and incorporates the toxins
from its food. Shell collectors often get attracted to the color patterns the snail has, but
when they kill the snails to get the shell, the shell is actually white.
In conclusion, the Flamingo Tongue snail feeds on gorgonians. The snail eats
them to absorb the toxic to protect themselves from their predators. Moreover, the
snail has a skin that covers the shell to make it
T. californicus is found from Alaska to Baja in small, shallow tidepools and tidal flats in the upper spray zone where they cannot avoid the full effect of visible and ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Individuals assemble in areas of lower radiation at midday, yet have no preference to the intensity of light at dawn and dusk (Hartline and Macmillan 1995). These tiny arthropods inhabit all types of marine sediments from sand to fine mud and ooze. Along with plankton, T. californicus eats microscopic algae, protists, bacteria, diatoms, algae and microbes (McGroarty 1958). When the concentrations of the species in their habitats are high, T. californicus will turn to cannibalism for a food source. The nautilus eye present in the species is rich with fatty acids and provides a good food source for the animal.
There is no doubt that arthropods are an extremely successful group of animals, with an estimated 5-10 million species worldwide[1], and this can be attributed to having an exoskeleton; it provides many benefits, such as protection from parasitism and other threats. However, one major disadvantage of having an exoskeleton is the limitations that an inelastic cuticle can place on growth. The exoskeleton provides protection, but when freshly moulted the animal is soft and vulnerable, as well as having limited mobility and use of appendages; many seek shelter before moulting[2]. There are similarities and differences between the moult cycles of all the arthropods, however only crustaceans and insects will be discussed here.
The Sacculina carsini, or parasitic barnacle, makes it’s host a green crab, also known as the Carcinus maenas. The parasite in this relationship changes the host’s behavior. It also enables itself to survive, spread and continue this cycle. As talked about in “The Parasitic Sacculina That Bends Its Host to Its Own Will”, when a female barnacle is still in its larval stage, it finds a crab host, and it locates a certain joint in the host’s shell. When there, the parasitic barnacle sheds her outer shell and puts herself inside the crab. Once she is inside, she is in a slug-like form. She creates a root system of tendrils, which extend throughout the abdomen of the crab. The root system takes over the crab’s intestine, diverticulae and surrounds the stomach. This
Cone snails are some of the most toxic animals in the world. Cone snails have a small range in the reefs of the Indo-Pacific area. Anyone who gets stung by one of these snails likely has only a few minutes to live. However, cone snail venoms are made up of conotoxins, biologically active peptides that target neurons and muscles. Snail venom used to paralyze the prey so because of their compounds with medicinal properties cone snail can help to dismiss the cancer and produce approximately hundreds of more powerful morphine.
In the phylum Mollusca, there are many organisms that have body parts that change as the environment around them change; such as the octopus. An octopus can camouflage to variety of objects in its environment. Each organism in the Mollusca phylum has a type of foot that stows mobility and they eat by a radula. The radula is strap like tongue that has very sharp teeth and they can change to be different shapes or sizes based on their prey. They have a pseudo coelomate body plan, meaning that they have a coelom that exists, but it is lined by mesoderm only on the body wall, not around the gut. This video enhanced my understanding standing of the phylum Mollu...
In some cases the eggs will get flushed out of the host. When this happens it releases miracidia that penetrate in to the snail. The snail is the intermediate host. When in the snail the organism uses asexual reproduction then development of cercariae. The cercariae can survive in...
Egyptians in terms of its beauty and craftsmanship. In addition, the Phoenecians also realized they could extract purple dye, a colour that would eventually come to represent royalty and wealth, from the Murex, a sea snail found along their shores. They purple Phoenecian dye was so popular throughout the ancient world, the Phoenecians eventually drove the Murex to extinction and had to find other methods of creating their popular and well known clothes. Because of the cedar forests that surrounded their land, the Phoenecians were also excellent carvers, creating trinkets as well as day-to-day items, such as bowls, that would be put up for sale around the Mediterranean.
Indeed, Grove snails at 0C there are only 47 Grove snails that are active, while Grove snails at 26C there are 251 Grove snails that are active. Therefore, snails are more likely to be more active in a higher temperature. Between 8-22C at 8C there are 248 Grove snails are active. As temperature increases when it reaches at 17C there are 273 Grove snails that are active. At 17C the Grove snails is at its optimum temperature and as temperature increases and reached 22C active Grove snails starts to slowly decrease to 270 Grove snails. Comparing to all temperatures, we can see a huge difference between number of active Grove snails at different temperatures. Indeed, temperature affects Grove snail’s metabolisms. If metabolism slows down then their activity levels will also decrease. Grove snails are ectotherms so they regulate their body temperature by taking advantage of surrounding temperatures. Since they are ectotherms they are only able to adjust their body temperature within certain temperatures and their body temperature will fluctuate with the environment. Ectotherms will have blood all over their body and if their blood are warm it will activate the body cells and it will increase the metabolism rate in the body.
Soft corals such as sea fingers and sea whips, are soft and bendable and often resemble plants or trees. These corals do not have stony skeletons, but instead grow wood-like cores for suppor...
The Great Barrier Reef is home to a remarkable number of organisms. The coral itself is made up of the skeletons of tiny, flowerlike water animals called polyps, held together by a limestone substance produced by a type of algae. Hundreds...
DNR, MN. "Faucet Snail (Bithynia Tentaculata)." : Minnesota DNR. N.p., July-Aug. 2011. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
Though food is everlasting in both the coral reef and deep sea, space is very limited. Organisms in both habitats have to compete for space and survival, having defense mechanisms to keep other species from killing out their kind. Some fishes in the coral reef hide in cracks and crevices along the rocks and corals to hide from their predators. Other fishes camouflage within the brightly colored corals to hide from predators, or even humans looking into their tank. The deep sea holds many small fish, but with large mouths. The large mouths and pointy teeth help the miniscule fish eat their prey, whi...
they find their food by their surroundings and sifting the sand of filtering the water. the bulk of their diet is composed algae and plankton matter. The big evolutionary change helped the shrimp defend itself, time before the change there wasn’t this many shrimp in the ocean most people eat shrimp and can cause a decrease in shrimp, progress has been showed since this great evolutionary change, there are some effects on the species such as not being able to see where it’s going and can sometimes get in to traps and trash in the
Coral reefs need to be preserved for many reasons. In this paper, I will discuss a few of them. First of all, they house a collection of diverse organisms, and contribute to fisheries which provide food items such as fish, crustaceans, and mollusks. Furthermore, coral skeletons are being used as bone substitutes in reconstructive bone surgery and may be able to provide important medicine, including anti-cancer drugs and a compound that blocks ultra-violet rays, they even help reduce global warming by taking carbon dioxide out of the air. These reefs provide a habitat for many species.