A snapping shrimp has the fastest vision of any aquatic animal


SOCIETY FOR INTEGRATIVE AND COMPARATIVE BIOLOGY
2021 VIRTUAL ANNUAL MEETING (VAM)
January 3 – Febuary 28, 2021

Meeting Abstract


94-7  Sat Jan 2  A snapping shrimp has the fastest vision of any aquatic animal Kingston, ACN*; Chappell, DR; Speiser, DI; University of Tulsa and University of South Carolina; University of South Carolina; University of South Carolina acnahm@gmail.com

Animals use their sensory systems to sample information from their environments. The physiological properties of sensory systems differ, leading animals to perceive their environments in different ways. For example, eyes have different temporal sampling rates, with faster-sampling eyes able to resolve faster-moving scenes. Eyes can also have different dynamic ranges. For every eye, there is a light level below which vision is unreliable because of an insufficient signal-to-noise ratio and a light level above which the photoreceptors are saturated. Using electroretinography (ERG), we investigated the temporal sampling and dynamic range of the eyes of the bigclaw snapping shrimp, Alpheus heterochaelis. Here, we report the eyes of A. heterochaelis have a temporal sampling rate of at least 160 Hz, with the eyes of some individuals performing up to 200 Hz. Our results show that A. heterochaelis has the fastest-sampling eyes ever described in an aquatic animal. Fast-sampling eyes help flying animals detect objects moving across their retinas at high angular velocities. A. heterochaelis are fast-moving animals that live in turbid, structurally complex oyster reefs and their fast-sampling eyes, like those of flying animals, may help them detect objects moving rapidly across their retinas. We also report the eyes of A. heterochaelis have a broad dynamic range that spans conditions from late twilight (~ 1 lux) to direct sunlight (~ 100,000 lux), a finding consistent with the circatidal activity patterns of this shallow-dwelling species.

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