Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.

To date, only morphological and anatomical descriptions of microwhip scorpions (Arachnida: Palpigradi) have been published. This very rare group is enigmatic not only in its relationships to other arachnids, but especially due to the fact that these animals dwell only underground (in caves, soil, an...

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Autores principales:	Jaroslav Smrž, Ĺubomír Kováč, Jaromír Mikeš, Alena Lukešová
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2013
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/3c959a8067ae4aa9b94016557b8c871d
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:3c959a8067ae4aa9b94016557b8c871d2021-11-18T08:50:52ZMicrowhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.1932-620310.1371/journal.pone.0075989https://doaj.org/article/3c959a8067ae4aa9b94016557b8c871d2013-01-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmid/24146804/pdf/?tool=EBIhttps://doaj.org/toc/1932-6203To date, only morphological and anatomical descriptions of microwhip scorpions (Arachnida: Palpigradi) have been published. This very rare group is enigmatic not only in its relationships to other arachnids, but especially due to the fact that these animals dwell only underground (in caves, soil, and interstitial spaces). We observed the curious feeding habit of the microwhip scorpion Eukoenenia spelaea over the course of one year in Ardovská Cave, located in Slovakia's Karst region. We chose histology as our methodology in studying 17 specimens and based it upon Masson's triple staining, fluorescent light and confocal microscopy. Single-celled cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) were conspicuously predominant in the gut of all studied palpigrades. Digestibility of the consumed cyanobacteria was supported by the presence of guanine crystals, glycogen deposits and haemocytes inside the palpigrade body. Cyanobacteria, the oldest cellular organisms on Earth, are very resistant to severe conditions in caves, including even darkness. Therefore, the cyanobacteria are able to survive in dark caves as nearly heterotrophic organisms and are consumed by cave palpigrades. Such feeding habit is extraordinary within the almost wholly predacious orders of the class Arachnida, and particularly so due to the type of food observed.Jaroslav SmržĹubomír KováčJaromír MikešAlena LukešováPublic Library of Science (PLoS)articleMedicineRScienceQENPLoS ONE, Vol 8, Iss 10, p e75989 (2013)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Jaroslav Smrž Ĺubomír Kováč Jaromír Mikeš Alena Lukešová Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.
description	To date, only morphological and anatomical descriptions of microwhip scorpions (Arachnida: Palpigradi) have been published. This very rare group is enigmatic not only in its relationships to other arachnids, but especially due to the fact that these animals dwell only underground (in caves, soil, and interstitial spaces). We observed the curious feeding habit of the microwhip scorpion Eukoenenia spelaea over the course of one year in Ardovská Cave, located in Slovakia's Karst region. We chose histology as our methodology in studying 17 specimens and based it upon Masson's triple staining, fluorescent light and confocal microscopy. Single-celled cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) were conspicuously predominant in the gut of all studied palpigrades. Digestibility of the consumed cyanobacteria was supported by the presence of guanine crystals, glycogen deposits and haemocytes inside the palpigrade body. Cyanobacteria, the oldest cellular organisms on Earth, are very resistant to severe conditions in caves, including even darkness. Therefore, the cyanobacteria are able to survive in dark caves as nearly heterotrophic organisms and are consumed by cave palpigrades. Such feeding habit is extraordinary within the almost wholly predacious orders of the class Arachnida, and particularly so due to the type of food observed.
format	article
author	Jaroslav Smrž Ĺubomír Kováč Jaromír Mikeš Alena Lukešová
author_facet	Jaroslav Smrž Ĺubomír Kováč Jaromír Mikeš Alena Lukešová
author_sort	Jaroslav Smrž
title	Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.
title_short	Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.
title_full	Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.
title_fullStr	Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.
title_full_unstemmed	Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.
title_sort	microwhip scorpions (palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in slovak caves--a curiosity among arachnida.
publisher	Public Library of Science (PLoS)
publishDate	2013
url	https://doaj.org/article/3c959a8067ae4aa9b94016557b8c871d
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Microwhip scorpions (Palpigradi) feed on heterotrophic cyanobacteria in Slovak caves--a curiosity among Arachnida.

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