Triton (mollusk)
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- For other uses, see Triton (disambiguation).
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| Image:Charonia tritonis shell.jpg Charonia tritonis
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Charonia tritonis |
Triton is the name given to various large sea snails of the genus Charonia, named after the Greek god Triton, son of Poseidon, god of the Sea. The shell of the giant triton, Charonia tritonis, can grow to over half a metre (twenty inches) in length. They are found in warm temperate and tropical waters.
Unlike many gastropods, tritons are not hermaphrodites — they have separate sexes and undergo sexual reproduction with internal fertilization. The female deposits white capsules in clusters, each of which contains many developing larvae. The larvae emerge free-swimming and enter the plankton, where they drift in open water for up to three months.
Adult tritons are active predators and feed on other mollusks and starfish. The giant triton has gained fame for its ability to capture and eat crown-of-thorns starfish — a large species (up to one metre in diameter) covered in poisonous spikes an inch long. This starfish has few other natural predators and has earned the enmity of humans in recent decades by proliferating and destroying large sections of coral reef.
Tritons can be observed to turn and give chase when the scent of prey is detected. Some sea stars (including the Crown-of-Thorns) appear to be able to detect the approach of the mollusk by means which are not clearly understood, and they will attempt flight before any physical contact has taken place. Tritons, however, are faster than sea stars and only larger starfish have a reasonable hope of escape, and then only by abandoning whichever limb the snail seizes first.
The triton grips its prey with its muscular foot and uses its toothy radula (a serrated, scraping organ found in gastropods) to saw through the sea star's armoured skin. Once it has penetrated, a paralyzing saliva subdues the prey and the snail feeds at leisure, often beginning with the softest parts such as the gonads and guts.
Tritons will ingest smaller prey animals whole without troubling to paralyse them, and will spit out any poisonous spines, shells or other unwanted parts later.
People find triton shells striking and attractive, and this has contributed to the animals' scarcity. From ancient times, people of many cultures have carefully removed the end of the shell and have used them as trumpets. The Greco-Roman god Poseidon / Neptune is usually depicted holding a triton shell.
[edit] External links
- An article on the crown-of-thorns starfish which contains excellent pictures of one being eaten by a triton.
