Brachiolaria

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Brachiolarialarve from Asterias sp .. Ernst Haeckel : Art forms of nature

The brachiolaria is a larval form of echinoderms (Echinodermata), which in the individual development ( ontogeny ) of many starfish occurs (asteroida). It is an initially bilaterally symmetrical shape, which is transformed into the five-pointed starfish (pentameric symmetry) after a metamorphosis . The preliminary stage of the Brachiolaria is the free-swimming Bipinnaria . The Brachiolaria has an adhesive device with an adhesive disc and three adhesive arms with which it is held in place for the transformation.

The name for this larva is the sticking arm (from Latin 'brachium' = arm).

literature

  • A. Goldschmid: Echinodermata, echinoderms. In: W. Westheide, R. Rieger: Special Zoology. Part 1. Protozoa and invertebrates. Spectrum, Heidelberg 2003, ISBN 3-8274-0998-5