A Monograph on the Sub-class Cirripedia (Volume 1 of 2): The Lepadidae; Or, Pedunculated Cirripedes — John Shaqi
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
[13] Chitine is confined to the Articulata. It was Dr. C. Schmidt
(Contributions, &c., being a Physiologico-Chemical investigation:
in Taylor’s ‘Scientific Memoirs,’ vol. v), who discovered that
the membrane connecting the valves and forming the peduncle, and
the tissues of the internal animal, were composed of this
substance. But Dr. Schmidt says that the valves in Lepas are
composed of 3.09 of albuminates, and 96.81 of incombustible
residue; I cannot but think that the existence of the albuminates
is an error caused by Dr. Schmidt’s belief that the Cirripedia
were intermediate between Crustacea and Mollusca, in the shells
of which latter, the animal basis consists of albuminates. For
after placing the valves of Lepas and Pollicipes in cold acid, I
found that the membrane left could _not be dissolved_ in boiling
caustic potash, but could, though slowly, (and without change of
colour,) in boiling muriatic acid; and these are the main
diagnostic characters of Chitine, compared with albuminous
substances. I may add, that Schmidt was also induced to consider
the shells of Cirripedia as having the same nature with those of
Mollusca, from finding that in the above 96.81 of incombustible
matter, 99.3 consisted of carbonate and only 0.7 of phosphate of
lime; but Dr. Schmidt’s own analyses prove how extremely variable
the proportions of these salts are in the Crustacea, as the
following instance shows:--
_Lobster._ _Squilla._
Phosphate of Lime 12.06 47.52
Carbonate of Lime 87.94 52.48
And, therefore, it is not very surprising that Cirripedia should
have still less phosphate of lime in their shells, than has a
lobster compared with a squilla.
Within the capitulum is the sack, which, together with the upper
internal part of the peduncle, encloses the animal’s body. The sack is
lined by a most delicate membrane of chitine, under which there is a
double layer of corium; this double layer is united together by short,
strong, transverse bundles of fibres, branched at both ends:[14] in some
genera, the ovarian tubes extend between these two layers. We have seen,
under the head of the Metamorphoses, that the delicate tunic lining the
sack is simply a duplicature of the thick membrane and valves forming
the capitulum, the whole being the posterior portion of the carapace of
the larva slightly modified.
[14] I am much indebted to Mr. Inman of Liverpool for having
kindly sent me excellent specimens illustrating this structure.
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