Exploring the Fascinating World of Gastropods (Univalves): Traits, Diversity, and Habitats
Gastropods, also known as univalves or "stomach-foot" creatures, include various types of snails, whelks, abalones, and limpets. These marine animals glide along ocean floors using a large muscular foot and possess a one-way digestive system. Characterized by a unique open circulatory system and a radula for scraping algae, gastropods show remarkable diversity. Some are herderivores, while others are predatory, such as the moon snail and venomous cone snail. They exhibit varied reproductive strategies, including hermaphroditism and external development of larvae.
Exploring the Fascinating World of Gastropods (Univalves): Traits, Diversity, and Habitats
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Presentation Transcript
Chapter 9.2 Gastropods (AKA Univalves)
Gastropods Traits • Gastropods = “stomach foot” • Univalve = “one-shelled” • Includes the snails, whelks, abalone, slipper shells, limpets, sea slugs (no shell) • Glides over the bottom of the ocean on a large, muscular foot • Mouth one-way digestive system anus
Gastropod Traits • Open circulatory system – one chambered heart and tiny blood vessels, colorless blood • Has excretory system – kidneys • Shell opening covered by operculum • Has siphon • Anterior and posterior tentacles • Radula – toothed structure used to scrape algae
Snails • Some snails are predatory (moon snail and the cone snail – which is very poisonous with a harpoon-like spear) and actively hunt food. • Others just scrape algae and are herbivores • Some have separate sexes, others are hermaphrodites – internal fertilization and external development • Egg hatches and forms a swimming, ciliated larva called a veliger - zooplankton
Gastropod Diversity • Biggest is the abalone • Very common types is the slipper shell • Flat-shelled limpet • Sea slug or nudibranch
