Hydra oligactis

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Hydra oligactis
Hydra oligactis.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Hydrozoa
Order: Anthoathecata
Family: Hydridae
Genus: Hydra
Species:
H. oligactis
Binomial name
Hydra oligactis
Pallas, 1766 [1]
Synonyms
  • Pelmatohydra oligactis(Pallas, 1766) [1]
  • Hydra fusca Linnaeus, 1767 [1]
  • Hydra rhaeticaAsper, 1879 [1]
  • Hydra roeseliiHaacke, 1879 [1]
  • Hydra rhisticaAsper, 1880 [1]
  • Hydra monoeciaDowning, 1900 [1]

Hydra oligactis, also known as the brown hydra, is a species of hydra found widely dispersed in the northern temperate zone and is also present in the southern hemisphere. [2] It is a common organism found in still waters from early Spring to late Autumn.

It is commonly found attached to the stems of water plants, the undersides of leaves, submerged twigs and on the surface of stones. When disturbed it retracts to a small brown blob which is easily overlooked. Gently sweeping through a clean weedy pond and allowing the collected water and leaves to stand in a jar will often reveal Hydra emerging after only a few minutes.

When in feeding mode, the fully extended tentacles are very long and may exceed 1 inch (25 mm) in length. In this condition the tentacles are very difficult to see with the naked eye and are often only revealed when a prey animal such as Daphnia is caught. The relative length of the tentacles compared to the body, the asymmetrical emergence of tentacles during budding, and the examination of cnidocytes on the tentacles serves to differentiate it from any other brown Hydra of cool temperate waters. [3]

Hydra oligactis is preyed upon by the flatworm Microstomum lineare, which incorporates Hydra stenoteles into its own epidermis. [4] [5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Schuchert, P. (2015). Schuchert P (ed.). "Hydra oligactis Pallas, 1766". World Hydrozoa Database. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 2015-06-29.
  2. Dujon AM, Boutry J, Tissot J, Meliani J, Miltiadous M, Tokolyi J, Ujvari B, Thomas F (2024). "The widespread vulnerability of Hydra oligactis to tumourigenesis confirms its value as a model for studying the effects of tumoural processes on the ecology and evolution of species". Science of the Total Environment. 951: 175785. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175785. PMID   39187082.
  3. Campbell, Richard D (1983). "Identifying Hydra Species". In Lenhoff, Howard M. (ed.). Hydra research methods. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 19–28. ISBN   978-1-4757-0598-0.
  4. Krohne, Georg (2018). "Organelle survival in a foreign organism: Hydra nematocysts in the flatworm Microstomum lineare". European Journal of Cell Biology. 97 (4): 289–299. doi:10.1016/j.ejcb.2018.04.002. ISSN   1618-1298. PMID   29661512.
  5. Krohne, Georg (2020). "Hydra nematocysts in the flatworm Microstomum lineare: in search for alterations preceding their disappearance from the new host". Cell and Tissue Research. 379 (1): 63–71. doi:10.1007/s00441-019-03149-w. ISSN   1432-0878. PMID   31848750. S2CID   209380951.