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Photosensitivity of the calanoid copepod Acartia tonsa
The light intensity and spectral sensitivities of the calanoid copepod Acartia tonsa Dana were determined by measuring phototactic responses. Adult females displayed only positive phototaxis. The dark-adapted copepod, which possesses a single naupliar eye, perceived light at intensities as low as 2.8x1011 photons m-2 s-1. The action spectrum for positive phototaxis had no clear maxima but rather showed a broad range of greatest sensitivity from 453 to 620 nm. This sensitivity encompassed those wavelengths that are maximally available at the depth where the copepod is found during the day. This spectral overlap, coupled with the finding that the copepod requires light cues for nocturnal vertical miration, suggests that broad spectral sensitivity is an adaptive mechanism to maximize light intensity sensitivity during migration. © 1984 Springer-Verlag.
Duke Scholars
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Related Subject Headings
- Marine Biology & Hydrobiology
- 3109 Zoology
- 3103 Ecology
- 07 Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences
- 06 Biological Sciences
- 05 Environmental Sciences
Citation
![Journal cover image](https://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=/lc.gif&issn=1432-1793&client=dukeuniv)
Published In
DOI
EISSN
ISSN
Publication Date
Volume
Issue
Start / End Page
Related Subject Headings
- Marine Biology & Hydrobiology
- 3109 Zoology
- 3103 Ecology
- 07 Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences
- 06 Biological Sciences
- 05 Environmental Sciences