WATER VASCULAR SYSTEM IN ECHINODERM
Introduction
Water vascular system is a division of coelom and most distinctive feature of
echinoderms.
It is a system of canals & appendages of body wall, also termed as ambulacral system.
Since, the entire system is derived from coelom, the canals are lined with a ciliated
epithelium & filled with watery fluid.
Water vascular system functions as a mean of locomotion.
It consists of madreporite, stone canal, ring canal, radial canal and podia or tube feet.
In different classes of Echinodermata, water vascular system is variously modified.
1. Asterioidea
(Water Vascular system of seastar)
a) Madreporite
Madreporite is the internal canal of the system connect with sea water
outside.
Madreporite located on the aboral surface in interraadial position having
nearly about 200 pores.
Each pore leads to a pore canal.
Pore canals join to form a common canal to open in to an ampulla beneath the
medreporite.
b) Stone canal
It is named so due to calcareous deposites located in its wall.
A vertical s-shaped stone canal extends towards oral side.
A longitudinal ridge divides the lumen of the stone canal in to two passage.
The lumen of stone canal is ciliated.
c) Ring canal
Stone canal opens in to a circular ring canal or water ring situated just internal
to the peristomial ring of asides around the mouth margin.
The wall of the ring canal are folded to divide its lumen in to a more or less
separate channels.
d) Radial canal
From the outer margin of ring canal are given out 5 radial canals.
Each radial canal runs in to each radial arm and terminate in to the terminal
tentacle at the tip of the arm.
e) Lateral canal
From each side of the radial canal, lateral canal are given off alternately.
Each lateral canal has a value and terminates on to a bulb or ampulla
connected to tube foot.
f) Polian vesicles
The ring canal forms five polian vesicles on the outer side.
They store water which is to be utilized when sea star comes outside the water.
g) Tiedemanns bodies
The ring canal on its inner side also gives off interradially nine small, irregularly
shaped bodies, known as tiedemanns bodies.
They produce coelomic corpuscles which are passed in to ring canalas such
giving the system, the name water vascular system.
h) Tube feet
A podium or tube feet, is short, hollow, elastic, thin walled closed cylinder
located in the ambulacral groove.
Water vascular system helps in locomotion. Animals moves by tube feet.
Water after entering the medriporite pass in to the stone canal, ring canal,
radial canal, podial canal and finally in to the ampulla of podia.
As ampulla contracts the water is forced in to the tube feet which gets
elongated.
The sucker like tip of tube feet touches the substratum and contracts again.
Fluid goes back in to ampulla and the body is drawn forwards bringing about
the locomotion of sea star.
2- OPHIUROIDEA
Medriporite lies on the oral surface.
It bears a single pore and a pore canal.
Some species have more than one medriporite.
Stone canal ascends to the water ring, which is located in a groove on the
aboral surface of the jaws.
Stone canal gives off a medriporite ampulla just beneath the medreporic plate.
Ring canal gives off four polian vesicles in each inner radius except one which
contains stone canal.
Sometimes polian vesicles are accompanied by long slender tubular
appendages, known as Simroth’s appendages.
Ophiuroids lack Tidemann’s Bodies.
Water ring gives rise to a radial canal in each radius which descends, towards
oral side, runs along the whole to terminate in to terminal tentacle.
Radial canals penetrate through the lower aside of the vertebral sides of the
arms.
In each aside radial canal gives a v-shaped podia canal or lateral canal that
enters on to a pair of podia.
Podia do not bear ampulla.
There is a value between podium and the lateral canal podia are reduced.
Entire water vascular system is lined with aliased peritoneum.
3- ECHINOIDEA
Water vascular system of echinoids is like that of sea star.
Stone canal descends orally to a water ring surrounding to the oesophagus aboral to
the lantern.
Five radial canals arise from the water ring and terminate in to the terminal tentacle.
Water ring also give rise to 5 sponge like bodies called Tiedmann’s bodies.
From either side of radial canal alternately come out lateral canals to the basis of
ampulla.
Suckers of podia in sea urchins are highly developed.
4- HOLOTHUROIDEA
They have water vascular system like that of other echinoderm but medriporite is
peculiar.
Neither it is connected with the body surface nor is it attached in the coelom.
Hangs just below the base of the pharynx and is connected to the water ring by a short
stone canal.
Pores and pore canals still persist in medriporite but in place of sea water, coelomic
fluid circulates in it.
Water ring encircling the base of the pharynx gives rise to elongated polian vesicles
which hang in to the coelom.
Five radial canals arise from water ring and pass upward to the inner side of the
calcareous ring and then outward through a notch at the end of each radial plate.
Ampulla are found on the both podia and tentacles.
In a podia which lack podia, water-vascular system is confined to oral water ring,
polian vesicle and buccal tentacles.
5- CRINOIDEA
Crinoids lack medriporite.
Water vascular system is restricted to a ring canal, 5 radial canals and the podia.
Pentagonal ring canal encircles the mouth and gives off at each inter radius, a large
number (30-50) of short stone canals that open in to coelom.
Each radial canal extends in to each arm, underneath the ambulacral groove and
bifurcates with the arm and gives off alternate branches on to pinnacles and podia.
Ampulla is absent.
500 to 1500 minute ciliated funnel like canals perforating the wall of tagmen to open
in to coelomic cavity, called as ciliated funnels.
These ciliated funnels permitting sea water to enter the coelom and maintain a proper
fluid pressure in the body and the water-vascular system.
