Author(s):
1. Nadia Ashfaq:
Centre of Excellence in Marine Biology, University of Karachi,Karachi, Pakistan
2. Noor Us Saher:
Centre of Excellence in Marine Biology, University of Karachi,Karachi, Pakistan
Abstract:
Echinoderms especially Holothurians are exclusively marine organisms with a variety of environmental and financial significance viable as now accounted in food. These species are useful in ecological monitoring to achieve biological and investigational aims since member of this phylum are sensitive to ecological changes and rich in the coastal benthic ecosystems of marine environments. Thymiosyciaarenicola is a pale-coloured holothurians having thin but rough body wall with a double row of large dark spots on the dorsal surface. This species is usually found in shallow water connected with sand and under slabs of rocks or rubbles. The current study is the part of ongoing study about an integrative taxonomy of the T. arenicolais also described with the help of calcareous parts (ossicles) present in the muscles. Sampling was done bimonthly during low tide from Buleji station. Samples were randomly collected for their spatial and temporal variability investigation. For ossicles study, muscular parts of body (N=10) were digested in KOH solution, through stirrer and incubation method. Later the samples were bleached and filtered through filter paper and procured ossicles were counted and their shapes were observed under the stereomicroscope and images were taken through camera mounted (Olympus) with microscope. The number of ossicles varied according to the size of individual. The different shapes (square, rectangular, W shape and longitudinal needle like) of ossicles were observed. This study provides the importance of the species in the benthic ecosystem, suitability of habitat and ossicles study that is potentially relevant information for future systematic, biological and phylogenetic studies.
Page(s):
0-0
DOI:
DOI not available
Published:
Journal: First International Conference on Revamped Scientific Outlook of 21st Century (Abstract Book), Volume: 0, Issue: 0, Year: 2022
Keywords:
Ossicles
,
Holothurians
,
Thymiosycia arenicola
,
Taxonomic study
References:
References are not available for this document.
Citations
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