|
Ophiocoma wendtii - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (123 words) |
 | The brittle star Ophiocoma wendtii inhabits coral reefs from Bermuda to Brazil. |
| It is known for its advanced compound eyes. |
| The only known animals to employ a similar visual system were the now-extinct trilobites. |
| Brittlestars use crystal lenses to spot approaching predators unique visual system is the first of its kind to be ... (827 words) |
| Dr. Hendler brought their attention to one particular species of brittlestars, Ophiocoma wendtii; he had found that this species, which appears to be particularly sensitive to light, can change its color. |
| By altering the distance between the lenses and the material, she found that the estimated focal distance of each lens at which the lens concentrates the light by about 50 times- coincided with the depth at which nerve bundles, which presumably serve as photoreceptors, are located in the bodies of brittlestars. |
| Thus the crystalline lenses and the pigmented cells in the skeletons of Ophiocoma wendtii brittlestars act as corrective glasses, filtering and focusing light on the photoreceptors. |
Feeds |
Contact