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Carinaria Lamarck 1801

Roger R. Seapy
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Containing group: Carinariidae

Introduction

The body is basically cylindrical and elongated, consisting of proboscis, trunk and tail regions. The stalked visceral nucleus and swimming fin are opposite each other on the posterior portion of the trunk. The visceral nucleus and gills are covered by a laterally compressed, cap-shaped shell. Tail size and shape are variable. A tail crest is present that varies in height, shape, and presence of pigmentation. The swimming fin is well developed and, in both sexes, has a small sucker on its postero-ventral margin. Only two of the species of Carinaria (C. lamarcki and C. challengeri) have a cosmopolitan distribution; three others (C. cithara, C. cristata and C. galea) are absent from the Atlantic Ocean, i.e. are Indo-Pacific; while one species, C. japonica is restricted to the Transition Zone Faunal Province in the North Pacific Ocean.

Brief Diagnosis

Carinariid heteropods with:

Characteristics

  1. Body morphology
    1. Body of varied length and cylindrical, proboscis short, trunk large and with a thick cutis, and tail of varied size, shape and length
    2. Visceral nucleus stalked; stalk of variable length
    3. Swimming fin on posterior part of trunk
    4. Tail of variable shape and size, with a low to tall dorsal crest
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      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      Figure. The three body regions and selected body parts in Carinaria japonica.

    5. Eye shape triangular (see figure below), except in C. cithara where the shape is cylindrical (Okutani, 1961)
    6. Pair of tentacles located immediately anterior to eyes, often with the right one reduced or vestigial
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      Figure. Left tentacle anterior and medial to the left eye in Carinaria galea.

  2. Shell
    1. Shell moderately compressed laterally and cap-shaped, with a flattened keel projecting from the anterior margin
    2. Height and length (at the aperture) of shell, and height of keel variable
      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      Figure. Shell covering stalked visceral nucleus and gills in Carinaria galea (left) and C. lamarcki (right). Keel produced from anterior margin of shell; tall in C. galea and low in C. lamarcki

  3. Swimming fin and sucker
    1. Swimming fin well developed
    2. Fin sucker located on postero-ventral margin of swimming fin
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      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      Figure. Swimming fin and postero-ventral sucker in Carinaria japonica, viewed from right side of body.

      4. Larvae with long, ciliated arms that serve for locomotion and feeding (see photograph by Jackie Sones below)

Comments

The genus Carinaria includes six species, which can be distinguished by the following characters:

Species Geographical  Distribution
Maximal body size
Shell shape
Shell height to basal length ratio
Shell Keel
Tail size and shape of tail crest
 Tail "claspers"
C. challengeri
cosmopolitan
40 mm
broadly triangular
0.5
lowtail small; crest very low
present
C. cithara
Indo-Pacific
50 mm
narrowly triangular
2.0
low
tail large; crest low
absent
C. cristata
Indo-Pacific
≥680 mm
triangular0.8-1.0low
tail very large and elongated, with posterior part of tail whip-like; crest tall; in large animals crest dorsum and posterior part of tail brown colored
absent
C. galea
Indo-Pacific
40 mm
triangular
1.0-1.4
tall
tail very small;  crest lowabsent
C. lamarcki
cosmopolitan
220 mm
broadly triangular
0.5
moderately low
tail moderately small; crest low
absent
C. japonicaNorth Pacific
105 mm
triangular
0.8-1.0
low initially; increasing in height with shell growth
tail moderately large; crest tallabsent

References

Okutani, T. 1961. Notes on the genus Carinaria (Heteropoda) from Japanese and adjacent waters. Publications of the Seto Marine Biological Laboratory 9: 333-352.

Richter, G. and R. R. Seapy. 1999. Heteropoda, pp. 621-647. In: D. Boltovskoy (ed.), South Atlantic Zooplankton. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden.

Tesch, J. J. 1949. Heteropoda. Dana Rept. No. 34, 53 pp., 5 plates.

Title Illustrations
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Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
Scientific Name Carinaria japonica
Location off Monterey Bay, California
Specimen Condition Live Specimen
Sex Male
Life Cycle Stage adult
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Copyright © David Wrobel
About This Page


California State University, Fullerton, California, USA

Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Roger R. Seapy at

Page: Tree of Life Carinaria Lamarck 1801. Authored by Roger R. Seapy. The TEXT of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License - Version 3.0. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license, and they may or may not be available for reuse. Click on an image or a media link to access the media data window, which provides the relevant licensing information. For the general terms and conditions of ToL material reuse and redistribution, please see the Tree of Life Copyright Policies.

Citing this page:

Seapy, Roger R. 2008. Carinaria Lamarck 1801. Version 12 July 2008 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Carinaria/28741/2008.07.12 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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