Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

SS23 In Transition: Biomechanics of Sensory Perception (Disciplinary Connections)

Date: Thursday, February 15, 2001, Time: 10:15:00 AM

Location: Acoma/Zuni/Tesuque

Lenz, P, H, Pacific Biomedical Research Center, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA, petra@pbrc.hawaii.edu

Hartline, D, K, Pacific Biomedical Research Center, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA,

Hower, A, , Pacific Biomedical Research Center, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA,

CALANUS FINMARCHICUS: ESPCAPE BEHAVIOR

Calanus finmarchicus, a dominant copepod species in the North Atlantic, is an important food source for many marine predators, including invertebrates, fishes and marine mammals. The survival of any individual C. finmarchicus depends on its ability to avoid predation. The kinematics of the escape behavior was studied in tethered C. finmarchicus. Escapes were elicited by small hydrodynamic disturbances and monitored with a force transducer. Escape jumps consisted of a series of one to many propulsive kicks from the pereiopods given at rates of 50 per second or more. Latencies were short over a wide temperature range. Consistent with other myelinated species, latencies were shorter than for non-myelinated calanoids of comparable size. Males and females had a different response pattern. Escape responses in males tended to be short, whereas the females responded with long series of 20 or more kicks. Escape jumps tended to be longer at the higher temperatures. The strength of the response was graded with stimulus intensity. Supported by NSF grant OCE 99-06223 and Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory New Investigator Award.

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Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

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