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ommatidium |
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ommatidium [‚äm·ə′tid·ē·əm] (invertebrate zoology) The structural unit of a compound eye, composed of a cornea, a crystalline cone, and a receptor element connected to the optic nerve. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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318), it has been obvious for many years that such structures need not be exceptionally small and need not be extremely like ommatidia to behave like ommatidia. The resulting columns of hardened and optically altered material inside the hemisphere act as ommatidia because they guide light along a precise line from each lens, Lee says. The exotic appearance of the compound insect eye, with its hundreds of miniature eyes called ommatidia, helps explain why scientists have assumed that it evolved independently of the vertebrate eye. |
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