Mollusks

Insect of the Week!

• Death’s head hawkmoth
• Acherontia lachesis
• Acherontia styx
• Acherontia atropos
• Three different species
• “skull” on thorax
• Raid honey bee hives for
nectar and honey
• Africa, Asian and Europe
Allometry
Allometry is the study of how individual body parts
grow and scale with total body size and each other.
Describes the scale of traits and/or processes.
◦ Total body size to claw size
◦ Total body size to skull, heart, gonad, liver size
◦ Total body size to metabolic rate
◦ Metabolic rate to fat metabolism
 Allometry
Allometry is the study of how individual body parts grow and
scale with total body size and each other.

Allometric Growth

Isometric Growth
Allometry
Allometry is the study of how individual
body parts grow and scale with total body
size and each other.
◦ Uses measures of size and shape to make
assumptions about organisms
◦ Descriptive
◦ Continuous data
◦ Cannot use count data
◦ Can used to make inter- and intraspecies comparisons
 Original data
Example 1: Therapod
Dinosaur
Length (m) Mass (kg) Graph 1
2.08 19.00
2.68 15.30 12.00
2.15 13.00
6.20 210.00
5.15 127.00 10.00
6.03 283.00
5.69 524.00
4.63 218.00 8.00
3.80 130.00
7.40 1010.00
Length (m)

7.90 1320.00 6.00

5.80 700.00
8.60 2500.00
9.00 2300.00 4.00
5.80 760.00
7.70 2100.00
10.60 5700.00 2.00
3.06 45.00
3.43 73.00
2.07 15.00 0.00
3.30 110.00 0.00 1000.00 2000.00 3000.00 4000.00 5000.00 6000.00
3.66 144.00
2.15 27.00 Mass (kg)
6.00 440.00
 Log10 transformed data
Therapod Dinosaur

Log10 Length Log10 Mass

Therapod Dinosaur Allometry
Length (m) Mass (kg) (m) (kg)
2.08 19 0.3181 1.2788 4.0000
2.68 15.3 0.4281 1.1847
3.5000 f(x) = 3.44081974188215 x + 0.0530313937244644
2.15 13 0.3324 1.1139
6.2 210 0.7924 2.3222 R² = 0.935631238785328
3.0000
5.15 127 0.7118 2.1038
6.03 283 0.7803 2.4518 Log10 Mass (kg) 2.5000
5.69 524 0.7551 2.7193
4.63 218 0.6656 2.3385 2.0000
3.8 130 0.5798 2.1139
1.5000
7.4 1010 0.8692 3.0043
7.9 1320 0.8976 3.1206 1.0000
5.8 700 0.7634 2.8451
8.6 2500 0.9345 3.3979 0.5000
9 2300 0.9542 3.3617
5.8 760 0.7634 2.8808
0.0000
0.2000 0.3000 0.4000 0.5000 0.6000 0.7000 0.8000 0.9000 1.0000 1.1000
7.7 2100 0.8865 3.3222
10.6 5700 1.0253 3.7559 Log10 Length (m)
3.06 45 0.4857 1.6532
3.43 73 0.5353 1.8633
2.07 15 0.3160 1.1761 y = 3.4408x + 0.053
3.3
3.66
110
144
0.5185
0.5635
2.0414
2.1584
R² = 0.93563
2.15 27 0.3324 1.4314
6 440 0.7782 2.6435
Interpretation
 Interpretation
Slope > 1.0 = Hyperallometric. There
is a relationship between variables.

y = 2x + 1
y=x+1 Slope ~ 1.0 = Isometric.
Growth/Scale is equal
10 among variables.

5 y = 0.6 x +1 Slope between 0 and 1.0 =

y Hypollometric. There is a
relationship between variables.
2.5
y=1 Slope of 0
No relationship between
0
1 2 4 6 8 variables.
x
 Interpretation

10
y = 2x + 1
Slope of 2.0:
5 y increases 2 units for every 1
y unit increase of x
Wings grow 2 cm for every one gram
2.5 increase of body mass.

1 2 4 6 8
x
 Interpretation
Y-intercepts indicate
4 how different two
x +
0.7 groups are at the
10 y=
smallest x-value.
5 1
Species A of fish are
y x +
y= 0.6 generally four times
2.5 larger than species B
of fish.
0
1 2 4 6 8
x
Mollusks
•Phylum Mollusca includes some 93,000 species
•Most mollusks are marine, but there are species that inhabit fresh water and
terrestrial environments.
• Alabama is a hotspot of freshwater mollusk diversity

•Coelomates – have distinct body cavities

•Soft body and lack of internal skeleton
•Protective shell is the pleisomorphic character
• reduced or loss in squids, octopuses, slugs

•Open circulatory system is pleisomorphic

• Cephalopods are the exception
Aplacophora
•Benthic marine organisms distributed throughout the world
•Covered in “scales” -> sclerites
•Limited understanding
• Many more species to be described
•Typically very small in size
• Most less than 5cm
• Some can be ~10 cm
•Kocot lab
Polyplacophora
•Chiton’s
•Many ”shells” -> 8 separate plates
•Iron covered radula
• Scrap food off substrate
• Found in most mollusks
•Tend to live in intertidal zone
• Few instances of deep sea
•Also, Kocot lab
Monoplacophora
•”one plate”
•Found in deep sea environments
•Not actually closely related to snails
•Not in previous phylogeny
• Likely most closely related to chitons
Gastropoda
•Snails
•Only mollusk found ”everywhere”
•Some have lost shell
• Possible to lose traits
•Radula
Cephalopoda
•Squid and octopus
•extraordinarily intelligent
• Lots of interesting stories
•Some mythical connotations
• Kraken, giant squid, etc
•Many highly evolved characters
• Eye-sight in particular -> highly accurate
• Camouflage
Bivalvia
•Both marine and freshwater
•High economic value
• Serious damage from overharvesting
• Fashion
• Culinary use

•Perform important ecosystem services

• Water filtration
• No radula -> ctenidia (feeding gills)

•Southeast a hotspot of mussel diversity

Scaphopoda
•Tusk or tooth shells
•Found in subtidal zone
• Bury themselves in substrate
•”horn like”
Mollusk Body Plan
•Foot is typically used for movement, and is located ventrally

•Visceral mass is the portion of the animal containing specialized internal

organs, including those of the reproductive and digestive systems

•Mantle is a specialized fold of tissue that encircles the visceral mass and
secretes the shell of these animals

•Radula is the feeding structure that is basically a tooth coated tongue

• Made of iron
Mollusks
Figure 8.10: Bivalve statocyst.
◦ The statocyst is a mechanosensor
involved in balance.
ciliated
columnar
epithelium
Heart
◦ 3 chambers statolith
◦ 2 auricles and 1 ventricle

Excretory organ
◦ Metanephridia

22
Mussel
External Anatomy
Mussel
Internal Anatomy
Mollusks
Figure 10.9: Bivalve anatomy.
Dorsal Surface Left Valve
(umbo/hinge) (not shown)

(siphons)
Posterior
Anterior
(foot)

(ctenidia)

Right Valve
Ventral Surface
(valve junction)

25
Mollusks
Figure 10.9 cont’d: Bivalve anatomy.
◦ Because the preceding figure may be misleading, note the following.

VM = visceral mass;
outlined in blue

The internal organs

VM
are located inside
this structure.

F = foot; outlined in red

26
SQUID
Squid

Pen
 Squid
FEMALE MALE
Mollusks
Figure 10.14: Cephalopod anatomy.
Dorsal Surface

Anterior End
Posterior End

eye

Ventral Surface

30
FEMALE MALE
To do
•Complete dissections
• Note the internal features discussed during lecture
• Measure total body mass
• Measure foot mass
•Avoiding injury
• Common sense
• Cut away
•Wear gloves
Homework
•Quiz 9 due Thursday March 23
•Test 8 due Thursday March 23
•Packback due Sunday March 12
• There is no packback due Sunday March 19