Table of Contents
- 1 What is the function of the gills in a bivalve?
- 2 How does the bivalve feed?
- 3 What two functions do the gills serve in bivalves?
- 4 Why are bivalves useful environmental indicator organisms?
- 5 How do bivalve shells grow?
- 6 How does a bivalve get oxygen?
- 7 How does a bivalve fish get its food?
- 8 What kind of shell does a bivalve mollusk have?
What is the function of the gills in a bivalve?
In most bivalves, the gills are involved with both respiration and ciliary suspension feeding (filtering small particles out of the water which are then transferred to the mouth by a pair of labial palps). Recent bivalves show a number of different gill morphologies depending largely on the feeding process employed.
How does the bivalve feed?
Like fish, bivalve mollusks breathe through their gills. As filter feeders, bivalves gather food through their gills. Some bivalves have a pointed, retractable “foot” that protrudes from the shell and digs into the surrounding sediment, effectively enabling the creature to move or burrow.
What are three functions of a bivalve gills?
The gills have three functions: (1) respiration�like fish, mussels use their gills to breathe, (2) filter feeding�the gills move food particles to the mouth, and (3) in females, the gills incubate baby mussels (larvae) until they are mature and ready to be released.
How do bivalves breathe and eat?
Bivalves are molluscs with bodies that are enclosed in a shell of two halves (valves) that can be opened at one end. The animal pumps water in and out of the shell. This water brings dissolved oxygen for the animal to breathe with gills and, in most species, food particles.
What two functions do the gills serve in bivalves?
Gills of most bivalves function in both respiration and feeding. Gills of almost all bivalves are the site of gas exchange during respiration.
Why are bivalves useful environmental indicator organisms?
Measurements on bivalves are reasonable indicator candidates because bivalves contribute significantly in these critical ecological areas. Water filtration for feeding is requisite for metabolic activity, and also generates nutrient cycling that stimulates primary production (vigor).
What do filter feeding bivalves eat?
Bivalves like oysters, clams, mussels and scallops are filter-feeders that actually make the water cleaner. And because they strain the water for food — eating both microscopic plants and animals — they don’t require supplements to their diet like fishmeal or fish oil, which can come from unsustainable sources.
What is the path of water through the gills of a bivalve?
Each lamella comprises vertical rows of filaments upon the outer head of which are complex arrays of cilia that create a flow of water through the gill, form a filtration barrier, and transport retained particles to food grooves in the dorsal axes or ventral margins of the ctenidia.
How do bivalve shells grow?
Bivalve shells grow by adding new material (calcium carbonate) to the edges. This leaves a pattern of fine lines (growth lines) on the exterior, that give a history of growth (much like tree rings on the inside of a tree). On the inside, the shell has a set of interlocking pegs (teeth) and sockets that form the hinge.
How does a bivalve get oxygen?
Most species of bivalves are filter feeders. Currents of water are drawn into the body and through the gills, where tiny food particles are caught in the gill mucus. This flow of water also functions in respiration, allowing organisms to obtain fresh oxygen.
How do bivalves adapt to seawater?
Seawater is much denser than air – as a result, there are vast numbers of microscopic organisms suspended in it. Cockles, as well as many other bivalves, are filter feeders. They have adapted specialised siphon structures to filter these organisms and any other particles of food from the surrounding water.
How can bivalves be used to monitor the health of the environment?
Bivalves, such as clams and mussels, are used in environmental monitoring to better understand the local conditions and how they might be changing. Using molecular and genetic tests on bivalve physiology, scientists can detect the effects of environmental and anthropogenic stressors.
How does a bivalve fish get its food?
A roughfile clam from the Flower Garden Bank National Marine Sanctuary—just one of many different bivalve mollusk species. Like fish, bivalve mollusks breathe through their gills. As filter feeders, bivalves gather food through their gills.
What kind of shell does a bivalve mollusk have?
Bivalve mollusks (e.g., clams, oysters, mussels, scallops) have an external covering that is a two-part hinged shell that contains a soft-bodied invertebrate. Like fish, bivalve mollusks breathe through their gills. As filter feeders, bivalves gather food through their gills. Some bivalves have a pointed, retractable “foot”…
What is the role of the mantle in a bivalve?
An internal organ called the mantle secretes calcium carbonate so that as the inner invertebrate grows, the outer shell provides a roomier home. Many bivalve species play important roles in aquatic and marine ecosystems by filtering the water and serving as habitat and prey for a variety of sea life.
What kind of bivalves live in coral reefs?
The greatest affinity of bivalves is with coral reefs. Indo-Pacific, but not Caribbean, reefs are the habitat of giant clams, Tridacna. Dead corals are bored by representatives of the Gastrochaenidae, living corals by species of Lithophaga.