Marine creature which looks like one long underwater caterpillar but is really a bunch of colonial organisms together.
Think mini-jellyfish all strung together by their heads to form a line over 100 feet long.
All the individual organisms have roles: catch and eat prey, defend against predators, reproduction, bioluminescence, direction/propulsion, etc. Sometimes there is a big "brain" at the front.
It resides in very deep waters, and if it goes to close to the surface it basically explodes (yes, death) from lack of pressure.
If you must know, the Siphonophore belongs Hydrozoa, which is a type of cnidarian (phylum). If you don't know what that is, you probably don't need to.
But if you must know, Hydrozoa is a class of marine animals which are like jellyfish and corals. They are primarily carnivorous, using specialized stinging cells to capture prey. Famous Hydrozoans are the Portuguese Man o' War and the tiny freshwater Hydra.
Think mini-jellyfish all strung together by their heads to form a line over 100 feet long.
All the individual organisms have roles: catch and eat prey, defend against predators, reproduction, bioluminescence, direction/propulsion, etc. Sometimes there is a big "brain" at the front.
It resides in very deep waters, and if it goes to close to the surface it basically explodes (yes, death) from lack of pressure.
If you must know, the Siphonophore belongs Hydrozoa, which is a type of cnidarian (phylum). If you don't know what that is, you probably don't need to.
But if you must know, Hydrozoa is a class of marine animals which are like jellyfish and corals. They are primarily carnivorous, using specialized stinging cells to capture prey. Famous Hydrozoans are the Portuguese Man o' War and the tiny freshwater Hydra.
Some scientist in the 19th century: "I found another creature! Let's call it SIPHONOPHORE, from the Greek words 'siphon' which means 'tube' and 'phore' which means 'carrier'. YAY!"
by Your Older Brother September 04, 2023