Summary
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1.
We investigated optokinetic eye movements in 3 species of stomatopod crustaceans (Odontodactylus scyllarus, Pseudosquilla ciliata, and Gonodactylus oer stedii), all of which are members of the superfamily Gonodactyloidea, by making video recordings of their behavior when placed at the center of a rotating striped drum. Results from these species were sufficiently similar to permit a general description of optokinesis in gono dactyloid stomatopods.
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2.
Within the range of drum speeds tested (0.40 to 33.6° s-1), the eyes frequently moved smoothly in the direction of the drum's rotation. The movements of the 2 eyes were only weakly coordinated, and optokinesis occurred with an irregular and intermittent time course.
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3.
Closed-loop gains varied with the drum's speed of rotation, ranging from 0.4 to near 1.0. The gain did not depend on the orientation of the eye in space, remaining relatively constant as the eye swung on its point of at tachment to the anterior end of the animal or rotated on the eyestalk axis.
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4.
In O. scyllarus (the only species tested), optokinetic eye movements in the animal's vertical, dorsoventral plane occurred with characteristics similar to those in the horizontal plane.
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Cronin, T.W., Marshall, N.J. & Land, M.F. Optokinesis in gonodactyloid mantis shrimps (Crustacea; Stomatopoda; Gonodactylidae). J Comp Physiol A 168, 233–240 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00218415
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00218415