Slit sensilla
Encyclopedia
The slit sensilla is a small mechanoreceptory organ in the exoskeleton
of spider
s which detects strain
due to forces experienced by the animal. As the name indicates, a slit sensilla is a small groove in the exoskeleton which deforms under stress, and these deformations are detected by neurons. Slit sensillae may occur singly, in widely spaced groups of varying alignment, or in tightly clustered parallel groups, with the last being called a 'lyriform organ'.
Exoskeleton
An exoskeleton is the external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to the internal skeleton of, for example, a human. In popular usage, some of the larger kinds of exoskeletons are known as "shells". Examples of exoskeleton animals include insects such as grasshoppers...
of spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s which detects strain
Deformation (mechanics)
Deformation in continuum mechanics is the transformation of a body from a reference configuration to a current configuration. A configuration is a set containing the positions of all particles of the body...
due to forces experienced by the animal. As the name indicates, a slit sensilla is a small groove in the exoskeleton which deforms under stress, and these deformations are detected by neurons. Slit sensillae may occur singly, in widely spaced groups of varying alignment, or in tightly clustered parallel groups, with the last being called a 'lyriform organ'.