What is an operculum and what does it do?

The operculum is a hard, plate-like, bony flap that covers the gills of a bony fish (superclass: Osteichthyes). It protects the gills and also serves a role respiration. Fish can acquire dissolved oxygen through pumping water over their gills by opening and closing their jaws and opercula.

What is a bony operculum?

The operculum is a bony flap of skin over their gills that protects the gills. It opens and closes to help bony fish breathe when they are not swimming. Bony fish have scales, and most species have a fusiform body design.

Why is an operculum important?

Many times, the most essential purpose of the operculum is to protect the live gastropod from drying up. This is especially important for snails that live in the intertidal zone, where they are exposed to air during low tides and submerged during high tides.

Where is the operculum in bony fish?

The operculum is a large flap consisting of several flat bones found on the side of the head of bony fish. During development, the opercular bones form within the second pharyngeal arch, which expands posteriorly and comes to cover the gill-bearing arches.

Where is the operculum?

The operculum is the cortical structure which forms the lid over the insular cortex, overlapping it and covering it from external view. More specifically it consists of the cortical areas adjacent to the insular lobe and its surrounding circular sulcus.

What animal has an operculum?

An operculum (fish), a flap that covers the gills in bony fishes and chimaeras. The cover that rapidly opens a cnida of a cnidarian such as a jellyfish or a sea anemone.

Is Crab a bony fish?

A bony fish’s prey depends on the species but may include plankton, crustaceans (e.g., crabs), invertebrates (e.g., green sea urchins), and even other fish. Some species of bony fish are virtual omnivores, eating all manner of animal and plant life.

Do cartilaginous fish have operculum?

Instead of having an operculum covering their gills, sharks and rays have 5-7 visible gill slits on the sides of their head. Unlike bony fish, the cartilaginous fish do not have a swim bladder, so must move continuously or else they will sink.

What does operculum mean in biology?

noun, plural o·per·cu·la [oh-pur-kyuh-luh], o·per·cu·lums. Botany, Zoology. a part or organ serving as a lid or cover, as a covering flap on a seed vessel.