Cnidaria – radiate animals

 Phylum Cnidaria
o General Characteristics:
 two germ layers/diploblasty (ectoderm, endoderm)
 presence of gastrovascular cavity
 hydrostatic skeleton
 fluid in the gastrovascular cavity
 some cnidarians have actual skeletons (ex. Coral)
 Dimorphism – presence of more than one morphological individual in
a species
 Polyp (hydroid) form
 Medusae (jellyfish) form
o Class Hydrozoa
 Hydra, Obelia, and Gonionemus
 hydroid stage is considered to be the juvenile stage; produces medusae
via budding
 medusae are considered sexual adults
 Hydra
 common name for 16 species known to occur in NA
 Structure: (refer to book for diagram)
o hypostome at oral end, bears mouth
 tentacles surround it
o buds and gonads
o basal disc
 secretes sticky substance for attachment
o gastrovascular cavity
o no anal opening (regurgitates waste)
o cnidocytes on tentacles
 contain special organelles called nematocysts
 cnidocils (tiny, projecting hairlike) are
involved in the discharge of nematocysts
o epidermis, gastrodermis, mesoglea
 Epidermis
 Epitheliomuscular cells – muscle
contraction
 Nerve net
 Occasional cnidocytes w/nematocysts
 Interstitial cells – may transform into
other cells when eneded
 Gland cells – secrete mucus, particularly
around mouth and basal disc
 Mesoglea
 noncellular layer
  acts as an elastic “skeleton”
o provides increased flexibility to the
animal
 very thin in hydroid polyps
 Gastrodermis
 nutritive-muscular cells
o shapeshift (become longer and
thinner)
o engulf food (phagocytosis) creating
food vacuoles which are digested
intracellularly
o discharge enzymes into
gastrovascular cavity
(extracellular digestion)
 Digestion:
o Extracellular
 food in gastrovascular cavity; gland cells secrete
digestive enzymes for partial digestion
o Intracellular
 food particles engulfed by cells of gastrodermis,
completing digestion
 Reproduction:
o Asexual – Budding
 part of body wall grows out, lengthens, and
develops tentacles and a mouth
 bud constricts basal end and breaks off
o Sexual
 some species are monoecious, dioecious
 interstitial cells may develop into sex organs
 Testes
 contain many spermatozoa
 found toward oral end
 spermatozoa break out of testis wall, pass
to egg and fertilize
 Ovary
 develops a large, ripe egg which breaks
free and lies on the surface
 Zygote develops then drops off parent
 Obelia
 Colonial hydroid
 Marine waters
 Minute medusae
 Dimorphic
 Structure:
o coenosarc – living part of colony
 o perisarc – encases coenosarc for protection
 secreted by epidermis
o two kinds of polyps:
 hydranths (nutritive)
 vase shape and tentacles at free ends
 epidermis, mesoglea, gastrodermis
 encloses gastrovascular cavity
 hypostome
o terminates w/mouth
o has tentacles at base
 tentacles:
o clusters of cnidocytes
w/nematocysts
 gonangia (reproductive)
 elongated club shape and lack of tentacles
 medusa buds produced here break away
to become medusae (which are dioecious)
 arise at junction of hydranth and
coenosarc
 medusae buds develop, become mature
medusae that escape through the
gonopore at the distal end
 Gonionemus (a Hydromedusa)
 found mainly in shallow protected coastal and bay areas along
both coasts of the US
 larger medusae than Obelia
 Structure:
o Exumbrella – outer (aboral) surface
o Subumbrella – inner (oral) surface
o Tentacles
 rings of cnidocytes
 adhesive pads at distal end
 tentacular bulb at base
 make and store nematocysts,
 help in intracellular digestion
 act as sensory organs
 statocysts (found between bases)
 organs of equilibrium
o Velum
 circular, shelflike membrane found around
margin
 aids in swimming movement (movement is by a
form of jet propulsion)
o Manubrium
  tubular extension bearing mouth w/ 4 liplike oral
lobes around it
o Gastrovascular Cavity
 gullet, stomach at base of manubrium, four
radial canals, ring canal around the margin
 gonads are suspended under radial canals
 sexes look alike and can only be
distinguished via microscopic inspection
 lined by gastrodermis
o Covered by epidermis
o Mesoglea between epidermis and gastrodermis
 thicker in medusa than in hydroid form
o Class Scyphozoa
 Aurelia – “True” Jellyfish
 mesoglea are thicker and contain cellular materials, making it
thicker than that of hydromedusae
 lack velum
 scyphomedusa parts are arranged in fours or multiples of four
– tetrametrous radial symmetry
 sexes are separate
o sex cells are shed from gonads into the gastrovascular
cavity, where they are discharged through the mouth for
external fertilization
 Development:
o free-swimming planula larvae develop within folds of
oral arms
 escape from parent, attach to a substratum and
develop into tiny polyps called scyphistomae
o schyphistomae becomes strobila
o strobila buds off young medusae (ephyrae) through a
process called strobilation
 Structure:
o 8 marginal notches
 each contains a rhopallium flanked by a lappet
 sense organ w/statocyst (equilibrium) and
ocellum (detect movement i think)
o Gastrovascular System
 oral arms (4) at center
 converge towards mouth
 mouth opens towards gullet
 leads to stomach
 4 gastric pouches extend from stomach
 gonads lie within
 canal system runs gastric pouches to ring
canal
  near inner edges of gonads: gastric filaments
w/nematocysts
 Eating:
o suspension feeder that feeds on zooplankton
o food organisms are captured by mucus secreted on
subumbrella
 moved by cilia to the bell margin, collected by
oral arms and transferred by cilia to the stomach
o partially digested food particles are circulated by cilia
through canals to distribute nutrients and oxygen to all
parts of the body
 canals are lined with cells that complete the
digestion
o Class Anthozoa
 All polyps in form
 Metridium – Sea Anemone
 all marine
 External Structure:
o cylindrical body
 oral disc – w/tentacles and mouth
 cylindrical column
 basal disc (how it attaches; glandular secretion)
o siphonoglyph
 smooth-surfaced, ciliated groove found in one
side of the mouth
 aided by cilia – help circulate water throughout
gastrovascular cavity
o peristome – separates mouth from nearby tentacles
o epidermis – tough outer covering
 Internal Structure:
o mouth opens into pharynx
 opens into large gastrovascular cavity
o gastrovascular cavity
 divided into six pairs of vertical chambers called
primary septa
 further divided into incomplete septa
w/free edges expanded into septal
filaments that have nematocysts and
gland cells that secrete digestive enzymes
o help to subdue prey and digest
faster
o gonads – thickened bands resembling stacks of coins
 anemones are dioecious
 Astrangia – stony coral
 Similar to anemones, however are usually colonial
 o similar in behavior
 polyps excrete calcareous cups for protection
 new individuals in colonies build skeletons upon dead ones
 Structure:
o column, oral disc, crown of tentacles
o no siphonoglyphs
o digestion is similar to that of anemones
o corals are built in multiples of six
o coelenterons of adjoining polyps are interconnected
through pores, allowing nutrients to be distributed
throughout the colony
o corallite – former home of polyp
 wall is called theca
 sclerosepta – radial partitions rising from the
floor
 adjacent living polyps continue to deposit
skeletal material into the corallites
 reef-building corals are dependent on zooxanthellae
o thrive better in shallow waters w/sunlight
o photosynthesis – zoox. provide food for their hosts,
recycle phosphorus and nitrogenous wastes and enhance
their ability to deposit calcium carbonate