REACTIONS OF LIMULUS TO ILLUMINATED FIELDS OF DIFFERENT AREA AND FLICKER FREQUENCY

In phototropic tests with young Limulus, the phototropic reactions to flickering fields were studied. If the two fields are equal in area and brightness but different in flicker frequency, the number of animals going to the two fields is proportional to their flicker frequencies. Equal stimulating effects of two fields differing in flicker frequency are obtained by reduction of the area of the faster flickering field. The areas for equal effect must be inversely proportional to their flicker frequencies. It seems that equal effects are dependent upon equality of the number of active excitation elements per unit of time.