University of Tasmania, Australia

UTAS Home | UTAS Staff | UTAS Contacts

Zooplankton

UTAS Home > IMAS Home > Image Key > Chaetognatha >  Aidanosagitta neglecta

Aidanosagitta neglecta

Aida (1897)

Download a fact sheet for Aidanosagitta neglecta (PDF 305KB) 

Taxonomy

Phylum Chaetognatha
Class Sagittoidea
Order Aphragmophora
Family Sagittidae
Genus Aidanosagitta
Species

neglecta

Size

  • Maximum adult body length 8 mm
  • Tail 26-30% of body length

Distinguishing characteristics

  • Body firm, opaque, slender
  • Head narrow but rounded
  • Hooks not serrated
  • Fin bridge absent
  • Anterior fins start close to the ventral ganglion; of medium length, fully rayed, rounded
  • Posterior fins of medium length, fully rayed, rounded
  • Long, narrow collarette
  • Large eyes, with star-shaped pigment spot
  • Seminal vesicles with knob and trunk touching; or close to posterior fins but separated from tail fin
  • Ovaries long, reaching to neck region
  • Ova large

Distribution

  • Epipelagic
  • Indo-Pacific between 30°S to 30°N

Ecology

  • Opportunistic predators that detect prey by sensing their movement, e.g. beating motions of larvaceans
  • Will feed on other chaetognath species
  • Exhibits diel vertical migratory behaviour

References

  • Alvarino (1967)
  • Conway, D. V. P., White, R.G., Hugues-Dit-Ciles, J., Gallienne, C.P. and Robins, D.B. (2003). Guide to the coastal and surface zooplankton of the south-western Indian Ocean, Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom
  • Gibbons, M.J. pers. comms. (2012)
  • Lie et al. (2012)
  • Marine species identification portal at http://species-identification.org/index.php