Imagem de Loxosceles reclusa Gertsch & Mulaik 1940

Descrição:

Under a magnification of 186x, 7X greater than PHIL 10075, this scanning electron micrograph (SEM) depicted the hairy dorsal surface of the anterior cephalothorax of a venomous brown recluse spider, Loxosceles reclusa, found inhabiting a Kentucky farm. These are not really hairs at all in the mammalian sense, which are composed of keratin, but are composed of chitin, and are known as setae, which are sensorial in nature, supplying the spider with information about changes in its environment such as changes in temperature, wind direction, and chemical queues such as pheromones and poisons. L. reclusa is sometimes referred to as the violin or fiddle spider, for on its cephalothorax one will see what appears to be coloration in the shape of these stringed instruments, which is quite evident in the color photograph PHIL 1125, depicting a live specimen. Also see PHIL 2224, and 6268 for additional brown recluse images.
Created: 2007