There are two separate instances of bioluminescence
in ostracods.
Not exact matches
The images show two large sperm pumps called Zenker's organs, resembling those found
in living giant - sperm - producing
ostracods (Science, DOI: 10.1126 / science.1173898).
Hunt and his colleagues drew on large collections of
ostracod fossils from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, the University of Southern Mississippi, and Louisiana State University, as well as additional fossils they collected themselves, to investigate whether species
in which this male / female distinction was most prominent had been more vulnerable than others to changes
in their environments.
There are around 60 species of
ostracods with this type of bioluminescence, but they are only found
in the Caribbean.
In particular, the bioluminescence produced by a little - studied microscopic crustacean, the
ostracod.
One type is used as a defense mechanism,
in which threatened
ostracods emit a cloud of bioluminescence to distract predators.
Tiny
ostracods thrived
in a pool of water
in the cave that was continually enriched by the droppings of thousands of bats,» says Professor Archer.
UNSW's Associate Professor Suzanne Hand, who is a specialist
in extinct bats and their ecological role
in Riversleigh's ancient environments, says the bats could have played a role
in the extraordinary preservation of the
ostracod sperm cells.
But Neil's samples came from a freshwater cave
in Riversleigh, Australia, where millions of years» worth of bat droppings left the sediment rich
in phosphate, which petrified the
ostracods» soft parts.
Matzke - Karasz read his appeal
in the 2009 issue of Cypris, a newsletter for
ostracod researchers, and when Neil sent the data, she was impressed.
Such fellowships have enabled Antarctic scientists to participate
in a range of significant research including using ice cores to determine proxies for the Southern Annular Mode, a molecular study of Antarctic
ostracods, and investigating particulate carbon and biogenic silica
in sea ice
in both the Arctic and Antarctic regions.
Researchers found that male
ostracods, also known as seed shrimp, evolved heavily
in terms of their appearance to the point that they missed on other survival factors.
Beyond that are various isotopes isolated from
ostracods etc.
in deep sea sediment cores.