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The eyes of two species of fishlice (Argulus foliaceus
and A. coregoni) were examined by light- and transmission electron
microscopy under dark- and light-adapted
conditions at night and during the day. The results demonstrate that
with their large facets, wide crystalline cones,
interommatidial angles of 13-17 degrees, and massive rhabdoms of the
fused type, the eyes should possess considerable
absolute sensitivity and be able to perceive moving objects
subtending at least 7-9 degrees of arc. The microvilli of the
rhabdoms possess a uniform diameter of around 55 nm and
are aligned in two orthogonal directions, which suggests that
the fishlouse eye has the capacity to distinguish the degree to
which light is polarized. This ability would be useful in detecting
host-fish against down-welling, flickering lights during
the day. A circadian rhythm is apparently involved in controlling the
position of the screening pigment granules of the retinula cells
(dispersed at night, aggregated during the day), but
not the much smaller granules of 0.25-0.30 m in
diameter,
present in the most distal screening pigment cells, which occupy the
spaces between adjacent cones. We counted 8 axons per
axon bundle emanating from the retinal cells of a single
ommatidium and conclude that a tiny distally and asymmetrically placed
rhabdomere belongs to the eighth retinula cell.
KEY WORDS: Crustacea, compound eye, photoreception, vision, retina,
fish parasites, host detection