Particle Capture and Selection by Larvae of Marine Bivalve Molluscs

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A combination of scanning electron microscopy, high-speed video microscopy, and manipulation of particle characteristics will be used to experimentally investigate and analyze prey capture and selection by bivalve larvae. Specifically, the research will address the following questions: 1) What are the relative roles of direct interception and hydrodynamic processes in particle capture by the cilia of bivalve larvae; 2) How do the physiochemical properties of particles (size, electrostatic charge and density) effect particle capture and selection; 3) Does post-capture selection occur? This integrated approach includes functional morphology, hydrodynamics and biophysics, and should be useful in better understanding the feeding biology of bivalve larvae and other planktonic ciliary suspension feeders.