Aplysia (/əˈplɪʒ(i)ə/) is a genus of medium-sized to extremely large sea slugs, specifically sea hares, which are a kind of marine gastropod mollusk.
These benthic herbivorous creatures can become rather large compared with most other mollusks. They graze in tidal and subtidal zones of tropical waters, mostly in the Indo-Pacific Ocean (23 species); but they can also be found in the Atlantic Ocean (12 species), with a few species occurring in the Mediterranean.
Aplysia species, when threatened, frequently release clouds of ink, it is believed in order to blind the attacker (though they are in fact considered edible by relatively few species).
Following the lead of Eric R. Kandel,[1] the genus has been studied as a model organism by neurobiologists, because its gill and siphon withdrawal reflex, as studied in Aplysia californica, is mediated by electrical synapses, which allow several neurons to fire synchronously. This quick neural response is necessary for a speedy reaction to danger by the animal. Aplysia has only about 20,000 neurons, making it a favorite subject for investigation by neuroscientists.[2] Also, the 'tongue' on the underside is controlled by only two neurons, which allowed complete mapping of the innervation network to be carried out.
^Foundation, Lasker (10 March 2020). "Eric Kandel: Learning about the human brain from sea slugs". The Lasker Foundation. Retrieved 2020-10-31.
^Redish, Edward F. (2003). "Chapter 2: Cognitive Principles and Guidelines for Instruction". Teaching Physics With The Physics Suite. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-471-39378-8.
Aplysia (/əˈplɪʒ(i)ə/) is a genus of medium-sized to extremely large sea slugs, specifically sea hares, which are a kind of marine gastropod mollusk....
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Aplysia juliana, the walking sea hare, is a species of sea hare, a marine gastropod in the family Aplysiidae. Distribution of this species is cosmopolitan...
source (for example species of sponges) and to find mates. In the sea hare Aplysia californica, the rhinophores are able to detect pheromones. To protect...
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Hirudo medicinalis. Learning and memory using nociceptors in the sea hare, Aplysia has been described. Mollusk neurons are able to detect increasing pressures...
Jeffrey S.; Johnson, Paul Micah (2006-11-01). "Ultrastructural comparison of Aplysia and Dolabrifera ink glands suggests cellular sites of anti-predator protein...
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Eudonia aplysia is a moth in the family Crambidae. It was described by John Frederick Gates Clarke in 1986. It is found on the Marquesas Archipelago in...
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