About two dozen species of
There are a dozen or so university-sponsored marine research stations on this coast, several of which offer undergraduate/graduate courses in marine study. Most of these involve original research projects, often accompanied by “journal-ready” write-ups and symposium-style presentations to conclude the courses. On at least two occasions, in 1964 and 1968 the focus at Hopkins Marine Station, California has been on research projects on specific organisms, namely, turban snails Tegula funebralis and limpets Lottia spp., respectively. In each case, the course faculty/advisers arranged with the Editor of The Veliger journal to publish the student write-ups in specially dedicated Supplements to the regular journal numbers. It is win-win for everyone. The students experience new challenges, gain valuable experience in formulating research hypotheses and implementing research protocols, get “published”, and have a lot of fun. Does this influence their future career choice? Well, maybe. A completely unscientific but probably fairly accurate survey using Google Scholar of how many of the students go on after graduating into scientific research, shows that of 20 who published papers on limpets in 1968, two carried on with marine-science research, three went into medicine/medical research/pharmacology, and the remainder moved into careers apparently not involving research publications.
ANIMATION of the snail's odyssey © Thomas Carefoot 2024
To navigate through the ODYSSEY:
- Select a TOPIC from the menu at the top of the screen
- OR: play the animation to the left
- OR: follow the snail's ODYSSEY by CLICKING on any X-marked invertebrate on the map above
Phylum Mollusca (lit. “soft” or “shellfish” L.)
Class Gastropoda (lit. “stomach foot” G.), referring to the body structure of viscera lying overtop of the muscular foot
SubClass/Clade Eogastropoda (lit. “early gastropod” G.)
SuperOrder/Clade Patellogastropoda (lit. “like a little dish” L. + gastropod), including limpets
Family Acmaeidae (lit. “point” or “highest point” G.), including dunce-cap limpets Acmaea mitra
Family Lottiidae, including all other limpets, Lottia spp.
SubClass/Clade Orthogastropoda (lit. “straight gastropod” G.) referring not to the shell but to aspects of their phylogeny
SuperOrder/Clade Vetigastropoda
Family Fissurellidae (lit. “cleft” L.), including keyhole limpets Diodora aspera and giant keyhole limpets Megathura crenulata
SubClass/Clade Heterobranchia
Family Trimusculidae (lit. “three muscle” L.), including marine pulmonates Trimusculus reticulatus