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Aristotle's lantern in a sea urchin, viewed in lateral section. The mouth of most sea urchins is made up of five calcium carbonate teeth or plates, with a fleshy, tongue-like structure within. The entire chewing organ is known as Aristotle's lantern from Aristotle's description in his History of Animals (translated by D'Arcy Thompson):
Echinus sea urchins suspension feed by using ciliary band that extends across the body of the pluteus, removing particles from any surface. Those particles then become confined by the pedicellaria of the sea urchin and carried to the mouth, also known as Aristotle's lantern. [4]
The green sea urchin has a structure called an Aristotle's lantern surrounding its mouth on its oral (under) surface. This has five teeth that can be used to rasp surfaces. It is largely herbivorous, feeding on the seagrass Thalassia. Its tube feet and spines also play a role in feeding, catching and holding bits of debris that float past. [4]
Oral surface of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus showing teeth of Aristotle's Lantern, spines and tube feet. Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. Strongylocentrotus purpuratus is a species of sea urchin in the family Strongylocentrotidae commonly known as the purple sea urchin.
Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis eats by using a special appendage called an Aristotle’s lantern to scrape or tear their food into digestible bits. This structure is made of five calcareous, protractible teeth that are maneuvered by a complex muscular structure.
Aristotle’s lantern is a complex system of jaws and muscles which are capable of a variety of feeding types including suspension feeding, herbivory and detritivory feeding, and occasionally predation. Adaptations to this lantern have allowed sand dollars to live in habitats which have fine, shifting substrates.
Other large specialist plates surround the mouth in a set of jaws known as Aristotle's lantern. [4] Sea stars have separate plates giving flexibility to the disc and arms. They are arranged into interambulacral and ambulacral regions and the arms have an ambulacral groove on the underside from which the tube feet project.
Many sea urchins feed on algae, often scraping off the thin layer of algae covering the surfaces of rocks with their specialised mouthparts known as Aristotle's lantern. Other species devour smaller organisms, which they may catch with their tube feet. They may also feed on dead fish and other animal matter. [88]