Malacological Society of Australasia

Molluscan Research

Volume 17: 30 June 1996

Comparative study on gill morphology of gastropods from Moreton Bay, Queensland.

R.H.M. Eertman*

Department of Zoology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072.
*Present address: Netherlands Institute of Ecology, Centre for Estuarine and Coastal Ecology, Vierstraat 28, 4401 EA Yerseke, The Netherlands.

This paper reports the gill morphology of seven common gastropods from Moreton Bay, southeastern Queensland, to test the level of difference in gill structure between major taxa. The investigated species include representatives of the clades Patellogastropoda, Neritimorpha and Vetigastropoda as well as representatives of the more 'advanced' Caenogastropoda. Examination by SEM and LM revealed that the external gill structure of the investigated caenogastropods (including Planaxis sulcatus, Littoraria articulata, Bembicium auratum and Morula marginalba) shows basic uniformity. The gill filaments are composed of a clearly defined ridge and an extended sheet of non-ciliated cells. The gill filaments of these species differ in the shape of the filaments (corrugated, triangular or rounded) and the presence of secretory cells. The gills of the limpet Patelloida mimula and neritid Nerita chameleon, representatives of the clades Patellogastropoda and Neritomorpha respectively, are both triangularly shaped, but differ by the presence of paddle shaped cilia in the former species and secretory cells in the latter. The gill morphology of the vetigastropod trochid Austrocochlea constricta, characterized by blade shaped filaments covered with nodules and a striped pattern of ciliated cells, showed the least similarities with the other investigated species.

pp. 3-20.