| Electra pilosa | |
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| Species: | E. pilosa |
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| Electra pilosa | |
Electra pilosa is a species of colonial bryozoan in the order Cheilostomatida. It is native to the northeastern and northwestern Atlantic Ocean and is also present in Australia and New Zealand.
Colonies of Electra pilosa form broad mats or star-shaped patches on the surface of the fronds of large algae such as Laminaria and Fucus serratus . The zooids also grows in small patches or tufts on the surface of shells and stones, and encircling the fronds of red algae such as Mastocarpus stellatus . The zooids are packed closely together, are cylindrical and about 0.5 by 0.3 mm (0.020 by 0.012 in). Each one has a mineralized exoskeleton with a transparent, membranous oval window. The calcified protective covering bears about nine spines (four to twelve), the central one being much longer than the others, giving the colony a hairy (Latin pilosa) appearance. [2]
Electra pilosa is native to the northeastern and the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea, the North Sea, the Wadden Sea, the White Sea and the Barents Sea. It is also present in Australia and New Zealand where it is regarded as an introduced species. It is found from the intertidal zone of sheltered rocky shores down to depths of about 50 m (164 ft). [3]
A colony starts when a larva settles on a suitable surface and undergoes metamorphosis into an ancestrula. This forms daughter zooids by budding and the colony grows by asexual reproduction. [3] In common with other bryozoans, Electra pilosa filter feeds with the aid of a crown of tentacles known as a lophophore with which it sieves particles from the water. It probably feeds on such things as flagellates, phytoplankton, bacteria, small pieces of algal debris and algal spores. The spines on the exoskeleton, especially the long one, offer protection to the zooid when it is feeding and may grow longer in colonies facing competition from other bryozoans. The growth rate of the zooids varies with the water flow, the temperature, the food supply and the competition from other bryozoan colonies. [4]
The colony is hermaphrodite but individual zooids are either male or female. In Britain, breeding takes place in August and September. The males liberate sperm into the water and the females may actively collect this. [5] Fertilisation takes place in the coelomic cavity of the female into which up to thirty oocytes are released. The fertilised embryos are liberated into the sea where they have a long period of planktonic development before settling on a suitable surface. They are present in the water column all year round, but settle between April and November, with settlement peaks in May/June and July/August. The larvae probably use olfactory clues when choosing places to settle and are able to evaluate the suitability of the surface and the proximity of other colonies. A colony can probably survive for several years on a suitable substrate, but will likely last for a shorter period when on an ephemeral base. [5]
Bryozoa are a phylum of aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all forming sedentary colonies. Typically about 0.5 millimetres long, they are filter feeders that sieve food particles out of the water using a retractable lophophore, a "crown" of tentacles lined with cilia. Most marine species live in tropical waters, but a few occur in oceanic trenches, and others are found in polar waters. One class lives only in freshwater environments, and a few members of a mostly marine class prefer brackish water. 5869 living species are known. One genus is solitary and the rest are colonial.
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A zooid or zoöid is a single animal that is part of a colonial animal. This lifestyle has been adopted by animals from separate unrelated taxa. Zooids are multicellular; their structure is similar to that of other solitary animals. The zooids can either be directly connected by tissue or share a common exoskeleton. The colonial organism as a whole is called a zoon, plural zoa.
Phylactolaemata is a class of the phylum Bryozoa whose members live only in freshwater environments. Like all bryozoans, they filter feed by means of an extensible "crown" of ciliated tentacles called a lophophore. They live in colonies, each of which consists of clones of the founding member. Unlike those of some marine bryozoans, phylactolaemate colonies consist of only one type of zooid, the feeding forms known as autozooids. These are supported by an unmineralized "exoskeleton" made of gelatinous material or protein, secreted by the zooids.
Alcyonium digitatum or dead man's fingers is a species of soft coral in the family Alcyoniidae. It is found around the coasts of the northern Atlantic Ocean.
Flustra foliacea is a species of bryozoans found in the northern Atlantic Ocean. It is a colonial animal that is frequently mistaken for a seaweed. Colonies begin as encrusting mats, and only produce loose fronds after their first year of growth. They may reach 20 cm (8 in) long, and smell like lemons. Its microscopic structure was examined by Robert Hooke and illustrated in his 1665 work Micrographia.
Ecteinascidia turbinata, the mangrove tunicate, is a sea squirt species in the genus Ecteinascidia, which was described to science in 1880 by William Abbott Herdman. The cancer drug trabectedin is isolated from E. turbinata.
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Didemnum vexillum is a species of colonial tunicate in the family Didemnidae. It is commonly called sea vomit, marine vomit, pancake batter tunicate, or carpet sea squirt. It is thought to be native to Japan, but it has been reported as an invasive species in a number of places in Europe, North America and New Zealand. It is sometimes given the nickname "D. vex" because of the vexing way in which it dominates marine ecosystems when introduced into new locations, however the species epithet vexillum actually derives from the Latin word for flag, and the species was so named because of the way colonies' long tendrils appear to wave in the water like a flag.
Obelia longissima is a colonial species of hydrozoan in the order Leptomedusae. Its hydroid form grows as feathery stems resembling seaweed from a basal stolon. It is found in many temperate and cold seas world-wide but is absent from the tropics.
Amathia vidovici is a species of colonial bryozoans with a tree-like structure. It is found in shallow waters over a wide geographical range, being found in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and adjoining seas.
Zoobotryon verticillatum, commonly known as the spaghetti bryozoan, is a species of colonial bryozoans with a bush-like structure. It is found in shallow temperate and warm waters in the western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea and has spread worldwide as a fouling organism. It is regarded as an invasive species in some countries.
Conopeum seurati is a species of colonial bryozoan in the order Cheilostomatida. It is native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. This species has been introduced to New Zealand and Florida.
Onchidoris proxima is a species of sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusc in the family Onchidorididae. This species is found in the northeastern and northwestern parts of the Atlantic Ocean. It is also reported from the northeastern Pacific Ocean. Previously in the genus Adalaria this species was moved to Onchidoris as a result of a molecular phylogeny study.
Cryptosula pallasiana is a species of colonial bryozoan in the order Cheilostomatida. It is native to the Atlantic Ocean where it occurs in northwestern Europe and northern Africa, and the eastern seaboard of North America. It has been accidentally introduced to the western coast of North America and to other parts of the world.
Watersipora subtorquata, commonly known as the red-rust bryozoan, is a species of colonial bryozoan in the family Watersiporidae. It is unclear from where it originated but it is now present in many warm-water coastal regions throughout the world, and has become invasive on the west coast of North America and in Australia and New Zealand.
Beania magellanica is a species of colonial bryozoan in the family Beaniidae. It has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring in shallow waters in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and in Antarctica.
Electra posidoniae is a species of bryozoan in the family Electridae. It is endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, and is commonly known as the Neptune-grass bryozoan because it is exclusively found growing on seagrasses, usually on Neptune grass, but occasionally on eelgrass.
Callopora lineata is a species of colonial bryozoan in the family Calloporidae. It is found on rocky shores in the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.