Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A small organ of balance in many invertebrates, consisting of a fluid-filled sac containing statoliths that stimulate sensory cells and help indicate position when the animal moves.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun An organ in certain animals, such as crustaceans and jellyfishes, which enables its owner to orient itself in a definite position with respect to gravity.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A balance organ present in some aquatic invertebrates, consisting of a sac-like structure containing a statolith and numerous innervated setae.

Etymologies

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Examples

  • However, sensory physiologist Hong Young Yan of the Taiwan National Academy of Science in Taipei, Taiwan suspected that octopus and squid might use another organ called the statocyst to register sound.

    UnderwaterTimes.com News of the Underwater World 2009

  • The base of the first antennae houses a statocyst which is used for balance.

    Crustacea 2008

  • Their only conspicuous morphological feature, other than their cilia, is a statocyst for determining orientation.

    The Panda's Thumb: November 2006 Archives 2006

  • Their only conspicuous morphological feature, other than their cilia, is a statocyst for determining orientation.

    Strange worm, Xenoturbella - The Panda's Thumb 2006

  • The shrimp with which he was experimenting innocently introduced iron filings into the statocyst.

    The Human Brain Asimov, Isaac 1963

  • CheHox1 expression; P: general view of the adult medusa; Q: higher magnification of the statocyst of the medusa delineated by the dotted line; R: Statocyst structure (delineated by dotted line) highlighted by immunohistochemistry, with dapi staining of nucleus in blue, anti-acetylated-α-tubulin immunostaining of cilia in green and anti-FMRF-amide immunostaining of nerve cells in red.

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles 2009

  • The CheHox1 expressing cells are localised in the basal epithelium of the statocyst, near the bell margin (figure 2Q).

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles 2009

  • Legends: bm: bell margin; cc: cilia of the circular canal digestive cells; csc: cilia of the statocyst sensory cells; er: external nerve ring; g: gonad; ir: internal nerve ring; m: manubrium; s: statocyst; t: tentacle; tb: tentacle bulb. figure 2A-E).

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles 2009

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