The objectives of this volume are to
present an up-to-date (literature
survey up to 2001) account of the
biology of Artemia focusing
particularly upon the major advances
in knowledge and understanding
achieved in the last fifteen or so
years and emphasising the operational
and functional linkage between the
biological phenomena described and the
ability of this unusual animal to
thrive in extreme environments.
Artemia is a genus of anostracan
crustaceans, popularly known as brine
shrimps. These animals are inhabitants
of saline environments which are too
extreme for the many species which
readily predate them if opportunity
offers. They are, thus, effectively
inhabitants of extreme (hypersaline)
habitats, but at the same time are
able to tolerate physiologically large
changes in salinity, ionic
composition, temperature and oxygen
tension. Brine shrimp are gener ally
thought of as tropical and
subtropical, but are also found in
regions where temperatures are very
low for substantial periods such as
Tibet, Siberia and the Atacama desert.
They have, thus, great powers of
adaptation and are of interest for
this capacity alone. The earliest
scientific reference to brine shrimp
is in 1756, when Schlosser reported
their existence in the saltpans of
Lymington, England. These saltpans no
longer exist and brine shrimp are not
found in Britain today. Later,
Linnaeus named the brine shrimp Cancer
salinus and later still, Leach used
the name Artemia salina. The strong
effect which the salinity of the
medium exerts on the morphological
development of Artemia is now widely
recognised.
Artemia Morphology and
Structure....Pages 1-37
Reproductive Biology of Artemia
....Pages 39-128
Physiological and Biochemical Aspects
of Artemia Ecology....Pages 129-170
Zoogeography....Pages 171-224
Evolution and Speciation....Pages
225-250
Applications of Artemia ....Pages
251-277