Open AccessThe rôle of the body fluid in relation to movement in soft-bodied invertebrates I. The burrowing of Arenicola
Author(s) -
G. Chapman,
G. E. Newell
Publication year - 1947
Publication title -
proceedings of the royal society of london. series b, biological sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2053-9193
pISSN - 0080-4649
DOI - 10.1098/rspb.1947.0024
Subject(s) - burrow , hydrostatic pressure , coelom , arenicola , hydrostatic equilibrium , geology , biology , ecology , anatomy , mechanics , physics , quantum mechanics
This investigation is an attempt to obtain quantitative results on the method of functioning of the body-wall muscle-coelomic fluid system of the lugworm which was chosen as an example of a worm having this system in a relatively simple condition. Measurements of the hydrostatic pressure developed in the coelomic fluid during various phases of activity, particularly during burrowing, were recorded, and the mechanism by which pressure is differentially distributed throughout the body is discussed. The relation of pressure changes to burrowing movements is described and some calculations of the thrust which can be exerted by the worms are given. It is shown that the forces available to the worms are insufficient to allow of straight-forward burrowing and that the ability to burrow depends on the thixotropic properties of the muddy sand in which the animals live.