LIFE STAGES
Medusa - the most prominent form of free floating or free swimming Egg - contains the zygote in which an animal embryo develops until it can survive on its own Planula - free swimming coelenterate larva Polyp - a solitary or colonial, sedentary form of a coelenterate such as a sea anemone Coelentrate - an aquatic invertebrate animal of a phylum distinguished by having a tube or cupped shaped body and a single opening ringed with tentacles |
HabitatThey can live almost anywhere in the ocean and some jellyfish can even live in freshwater. They are free swimming or sedentary and solitary or colonial.
MovementPolyps are sessile, which means they do not move.
Medusa are mobile, they use simple ring contractile tissue. |
Sensory/Nervous SystemDo not have a nervous system but instead, have nerve nets that are made of sensory neurons. These neurons can react to different stimuli by sending signals to other regions of the body.
Excretion/Gas Exchange/CirculationAll are done through means of simple diffusion. Ammonia waste and gas diffuse out of the body and into the water.
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SupportCnidarians have a hydrostatic skeleton where the muscles use the water to enable movement and gain support.
Feeding/DigestionThese animals have a gastrovascular cavity where digestion takes place. They have an incomplete gut, so there is only one way out - through the mouth.
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ReproductionAsexual reproduction by budding and sexual reproduction by egg and sperm. Larva swim until it finds a good spot, becomes a polyp, and grows normally until it absorbs its tentacles and splits. Adults have gonads and gastroderms. They release ova and sperm into the water during the breeding season.
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Distinguishing FeaturesBodies may be either bell-shaped or vase-shaped.
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