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Magnetic molluscs in motion

Nature (1999)Cite this article

There's more to the marine mollusc, Tritonia diomedea, than meets the eye. It may look like many another mucilaginous invertebrate but beneath its slimy exterior lurks the ability to navigate according to the magnetic field of the Earth. Moreover, as researchers I. R. Popescu and A. O. D. Willows of the University of Washington have found, treated right, it can be persuaded to heave its sticky bulk around a miniature treadmill.

Neuroscientists have been studying this unprepossessing sea-slug for decades because its simple nervous system is so easily accessible that it can be opened up and manipulated while the creature is still alive. Now Popescu and Willows have been making use of this so-called 'semi-intact' technique to study how it is that Tritonia diomedea senses and responds to geomagnetic stimuli.

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References

  1. Popescu,I. R. & Willows, A. O. D. Sources of magnetic sensory input to identified neurons active during crawling in the marine mollusc Tritonia diomedea. The Journal of Experimental Biology 202, 3029 - 3036 1999.

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  1. Sara Abdulla
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Abdulla, S. Magnetic molluscs in motion. Nature (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/news991021-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/news991021-8

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