A Monograph on the Sub-class Cirripedia (Volume 1 of 2): The Lepadidae; Or, Pedunculated CirripedesDarwin, Charles
Science
A Monograph on the Sub-class Cirripedia (Volume 1 of 2): The Lepadidae; Or, Pedunculated Cirripedes
Darwin, Charles
Cirripedia; Lepadidae
_Cavities in the Scuta of the Female for the reception of the
Males._--These extend nearly parallel to the tergal margin, transversely
across the valves, for three fourths of their width; they are seated
above the depression for the adductor muscle, and are more conspicuous
than it; they are deep and well defined, and each exactly contains one
male. The males are placed with their orifices in a little notch in the
occludent margin, and their prehensile antennæ at the further end. The
distance to which the cavities extend across the valve, and their
distance from the upper or tergal margin, varies a little, but chiefly
in accordance with the age of the specimens; for the valve continues to
increase in width, whilst the size of the cavity remains the same. The
occludent margin of the scutum in the largest female, was .1 of an inch
in length; of another, in which there was a fully developed cavity,
.084; of a third, in which there was no cavity, only a slight concavity,
with a preparatory impression, the length of the occludent margin was
.062. The larger and smaller of these three valves, are drawn of their
proper proportional sizes, in Pl. VI, figs. 1 _b´_, 1 _c´_. The
preparatory impression (fig. 1 _c´_, _b_), consists of a narrow, not
quite straight, extremely slight furrow, of slightly irregular width,
bordered on each side by a very minute ridge, which is distinctly
continuous with the inner edge of the occludent margin, both above and
below the cavity. The furrow appears to have been formed by calcareous
matter not having been deposited along this line, during the thickening
or growth of the internal surface of the valve: I suspect, that it
originates at a single period of growth, for I could see no signs of
successively-formed transverse lines. I believe that it is strictly
homologous with the fold, over which the complemental male is attached
in _S. vulgare_, but carried, for a special purpose, much further across
the valve and rectangularly inwards, for in structure and position both
are identical. In comparing the internal views of the scuta in _S.
vulgare_ and _S. ornatum_ (Pl. V, fig. 15 _a´_, and Pl. VI, fig. 1
_c´_), it must be borne in mind, that the latter should be compared, as
clearly shown by the lines of growth, with that portion alone of the
scutum in _S. vulgare_, which lies under the curved ridge connecting the
umbo and tergo-lateral angle. The deep cavity in which the male is
lodged, is formed subsequently to the preparatory furrow, simply by the
gradual thickening of the surrounding surface of the valve, more
especially of a ridge just above the pit for the adductor muscle, and of
another broad ridge just beneath the tergal margin. The deepest part of
the cavity lies parallel to the tergal margin along the upper side, and
here, in the older valves, the preparatory furrow can by care be
distinctly traced. In conformity with the shape of the cavity, the
orifice or notch in the occludent margin of the scutum, is situated at
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