Actinotroch
Script error: No such module "AfC submission catcheck". Achinotrochs are the larvae of all but four species of phoronids.
Body structure[edit]
The actinotroch is an upright cylinder with the anus at the bottom and fringed with cilia. At the top is a lobe or hood, under which are: a ganglion, connected to a patch of cilia outside the apex of the hood; a pair of protonephridia (smaller and simpler than the metanephridia in the adult); the mouth; and feeding tentacles that encircle the mouth. After swimming for about 20 days, the actinotroch settles on the seabed and undergoes a catastrophic metamorphosis (radical change) in 30 minutes: the hood and larval tentacles are absorbed and the adult lophophore is created around the mouth, and both now point upward; the gut develops a U-bend so that the anus is just under and outside the lophophore. Finally the adult phoronid builds a tube.[1]
Ecology[edit]
Achinotrochs are planktonic and contribute to a large amount of zooplankton biomass. The larvae themselves feed on other forms on plankton.[1]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Temereva, E.N. (2009). "New data on distribution, morphology and taxonomy of phoronid larvae (Lophophorata: Phoronida)" (PDF). Invertebrate Zoology. 6: 47–64. Retrieved 25 Feb 2022.
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