Their development goes through three forms: the very young animals have a single pair of fins, an intermediate form has two pairs, and the mature form again has one. As the animals grow and their surface area to volume ratio drops, the fins are resized and repositioned in order to maximize gait efficiency. Whereas the young propel themselves primarily by jet propulsion, mature adults find flapping their fins to be the most efficient means. This unique ontogeny caused confusion in the past, with the varying forms identified as several species in distinct families (Young 2002).
The Vampire Squid likely reproduces slowly by way of a small number of large eggs. Growth is slow as food is not abundant at depths where the animals live. The vastness of their habitat and its sparse population make procreative encounters a fortuitous event. The female may store a male's hydraulically implanted spermatophore (a sort of tapered, cylindrical satchel of sperm) for long periods before she is ready to fertilize her eggs. Once she does, she may need to brood over them for up to 400 days before they hatch. The female will not eat towards this culmination and dies shortly thereafter.
Hatchlings are about 8 mm in length and are well-developed miniatures of the adults, with some differences. Their arms lack webbing, their eyes are smaller and their velar filaments are not fully formed. The hatchlings are transparent and survive on a generous internal yolk for an unknown period before they begin to actively feed. The smaller animals frequent much deeper waters, perhaps feeding on marine snow (falling organic detritus).
What behavioral data known has been gleaned from ephemeral encounters with ROVs; animals are often damaged during capture and survive for no more than about two months in aquaria. An artificial environment makes reliable observation of non-defensive behavior difficult.
With their long velar filaments deployed, Vampire Squid have been observed drifting along in the deep, black ocean currents. If the filaments contact an entity, or if vibrations impinge upon them, the animals investigate with rapid acrobatic movements. They are capable of swimming at speeds equivalent to two body lengths per second, with an acceleration time of five seconds. However, their weak muscles limit stamina considerably.
Unlike their relatives living in more hospitable depths, deep-sea cephalopods cannot afford to spend energy in protracted flight. Given their low metabolic rate and the low density of prey at such depths, Vampire Squid must use innovative predator avoidance tactics in order to save energy. Their aforementioned bioluminescent "fireworks" are combined with the writhing of glowing arms, erratic movements and escape trajectories. These features make it difficult for a predator to home in.
In a threat response called "pumpkin" or "pineapple posture", the Vampire Squid inverts its caped arms back over the body, presenting an ostensibly larger form covered in fearsome-looking though harmless spines (called cirri). The underside of the cape is heavily pigmented, masking most of the body's photophores. The glowing arm tips are clustered together far above the animal's head, diverting attack away from critical areas. If a predator were to bite off an arm tip, the Vampire Squid can regenerate it.
Copepods, prawns and cnidarians have all been reported as prey of Vampire Squid. Little else is known regarding their feeding habits. Considering their environment,they are unlikely to be picky about food. Vampire Squid have been found among the stomach contents of large deepwater fish, deep diving whales and pinnipeds such as sea lions.
The Vampyromorphida are characterized by the possession of photophores, a peculiar type of uncalcified endoskeleton called "gladius", 8 webbed arms and the 2 velar filaments. Until fairly recently known only from the modern species and some fossil remains tentatively allocated to this group, a batch of kirbys from the Middle Jurassic c.165-164 million years ago (mya) specimens found at La Voulte-sur-Rhône demonstrated that clearly vampyromorphid cephalopods were in existence for far longer than has been hitherto believed. These were described as "Vampyronassa rhodanica".
The supposed vampyromorphids from Solnhofen limestone (156-146 mya), "Plesioteuthis prisca", "Leptoteuthis gigas", and "Trachyteutis hastiformis", are large species, and show features not found in vampyromorphids. They are similar to the true squids, Teuthida (Fischer & Riou 2002).
Classical Greece
Classical Greece was the period in ancient Greece from about 500–323 BC. It had a civilisation and style which was considered by later observers to be outstanding. Politically, the classical period was dominated by Athens and the Delian League during the 5th century, or from the beginning of the Greco-Persian Wars to the Peloponnesian War in 404 BC. It is considered to have ended in 323 BC with the death of Alexander the Great and the subsequent collapse of the Macedonian Empire.
Classical Greece was followed by the Hellenistic period of history.
Gwinnett County, Georgia
Gwinnett County is a county in the American state of Georgia. The county seat of Gwinnett County is Lawrenceville. The county was created on December 15, 1818. The Census bureau says there were 754,104 people living in Gwinnett County in 2006.
The county was named for Button Gwinnett, one of the people who signed the United States Declaration of Independence for Georgia.
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia (UGA) is a university that is in and around Athens, Georgia. The university was created January 27, 1785 and was the first state university in the United States. However, it was not the first state university to hold classes or to graduate students. That honor belongs to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
About 34,000 students go to the school. The University's mascot is a bulldog named "Uga".
Only white male students studied at UGA during the first century of its history. UGA began educating female students during the summer of 1903. Women were not admitted as full-time undergraduates until 1918. Before official admission of women to the University, several women were able to complete graduate degrees through credit earned during the summer sessions. The first woman to earn such a degree was Mary Lyndon. She received a Master of Arts degree in 1914. Mary Creswell earned the first undergraduate degree in June 1919, a B.S. in Home Economics. Two UGA dormitories are named after these graduates: Creswell Hall and Mary Lyndon Hall.
Racial integration started in 1961, with the admission of Hamilton E. Holmes and Charlayne Hunter after notable tension with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In 2001, on the fortieth anniversary of their having first registered for classes, the University renamed a prominent campus building in their honor: Holmes-Hunter Academic Building. Although Hunter and Holmes were the first African-American students to matriculate at UGA, Mary Frances Early became the first African-American graduate by earning her master’s (MMEd) in music education in 1962. In 1963, Chester Davenport became the first African-American admitted to the UGA School of Law and its first African-American graduate (LL.B. 1966). A decade later, Sharon Tucker was the first female African-American law graduate, earning her J.D. in 1974.
Gerhard Armauer Hansen
Gerhard Hendrik Armauer Hansen (July 29, 1841 - February 12, 1912) was a Norwegian doctor. He is famous for discovering the bacteria that causes leprosy in 1873. That disease is also called "Hansen's disease" in his honour.
Fire station
A fire station (also known as a firehouse or fire hall) is a building for storing fire engines and other firefighting equipment.