Calcium sulfate hemihydrate (bassanite) statoliths in the cubozoan Carybdea sp. |
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| Authors: | Henry Tiemann, Ilka S tje, Alexander Becker, Gerhard Jarms,Matthias Epple |
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| Affiliation: | aBiocenter Grindel, University of Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, D-20146 Hamburg, Germany;bInorganic Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitaetsstraße 5-7, D-45117 Essen, Germany |
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| Abstract: | The chemistry and physical structure of statoliths of young cubozoan medusae (Carybdea sp.) were examined by X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD). These concretions, associated with sensory receptors, were found to consist of bassanite (calcium sulfate hemihydrate), a dense but hygroscopic biomineral. Bassanite occurs in a cluster of radially oriented crystals in a druse, which contains perfect hexagonal crystals. This discovery provides evidence that the Rhopaliophora (Scyphozoa and Cubozoa) originated from an ancestor having statoliths of bassanite. |
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| Keywords: | Rhopaliophora Biomineralisation Calcium sulfate X-ray diffraction Phylogeny |
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