(invertebrate zoology) An order of the cnidarian class Hydrozoa characterized by the complex organization of components which may be connected by a stemlike region or may be more closely united into a compact organism.
Siphonophorae
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(′sī·fə′näf·rə)
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An order of the class Hydrozoa of the phylum Coelenterata, characterized by an extremely complex organization of components of several different types, some having the basic structure of a jellyfish, others of a polyp. The components may be connected by a stemlike region or may be more closely united into a compact organism.
Most siphonophores possess a float and are animals of the open seas. Best known is the Portuguese man-of-war, Physalia, with a float as much as 16 in. (40 cm) long and tentacles which extend downward for many feet. These animals may be swept shoreward and may make swimming not only unpleasant but dangerous. See also Coelenterata; Hydrozoa.
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IN BRIEF: n. - Marine colonial hydrozoans.
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.
The noun has one meaning:
Meaning #1:
marine colonial hydrozoans
Synonym: order Siphonophora
| Wikipedia: Siphonophorae |
| Siphonophores | |
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| Portuguese Man o' War, Physalia physalis (Cystonectae: Physaliidae) |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Subkingdom: | Eumetazoa |
| Phylum: | Cnidaria |
| Subphylum: | Medusozoa |
| Class: | Hydrozoa |
| Subclass: | Leptolinae |
| Order: | Siphonophorae Eschscholtz, 1829 |
| Suborders | |
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Calycophorae |
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| Synonyms | |
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Siphonophora Eschscholtz, 1829 |
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Siphonophorae or Siphonophora, the siphonophores, are an order of the Hydrozoa, a class of marine invertebrates belonging to the phylum Cnidaria. They are colonial, but the colonies can superficially resemble jellyfish; although they appear to be a single organism, each specimen is actually a colony of Siphonophora. The best known species is the dangerous Portuguese Man o' War (Physalia physalis).
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Description
Siphonophores are especially scientifically interesting because they are composed of medusoid and polypoid zooids that are morphologically and functionally specialized. Siphonophores have been known to grow up to 130 feet in length.[1] Each zooid is an individual, but their integration with each other is so strong that the colony attains the character of one large organism. Indeed, most of the zooids are so specialized that they lack the ability to survive on their own. Siphonophorae thus exist at the boundary between colonial and complex multicellular organisms. Also, because multicellular organisms have cells which, like zooids, are specialized and interdependent, siphonophores may provide clues regarding their evolution.[2]
Like other hydrozoans, certain siphonophores can emit light. A siphonophore of the genus Erenna has been discovered at a depth of around 1,600 meters off the coast of Monterey, California. The individuals from these colonies are strung together like a feather boa. They prey on small animals using stinging cells. Among the stinging cells are stalks with red glowing ends. The tips twitch back and forth creating a twinkling effect. It is theorized that twinkling red light attracts small fish that have been found eaten by these siphonophores. While many sea animals produce blue and green bioluminescence, this siphonophore was only the second lifeform found to produce a red light (the first being the Scaleless Dragonfish, Chirostomias pliopterus).[3]
Systematics
Plate 37 in Kunstformen der Natur by Ernst Haeckel (1904). See also below.
Due to their highly specialized colonies, siphonophores have long misled scientists. They were for a long time believed to be a highly distinct group, but now are known to have evolved from simpler colonial hydrozoans similar to Anthomedusae or Leptomedusae. Consequently, they are now united with these in a subclass Leptolinae.
The Siphonophorae have long fascinated scientists and layfolk alike, due to their dramatic appearance as well as the large size and dangerous sting of several species. Compared to their relatives, their systematics are relatively straightforward:[4]
Suborder Calycophorae
- Family Abylidae
- Family Clausophyidae
- Family Diphyidae
- Family Hippopodiidae
- Family Prayidae
- Family Sphaeronectidae
Suborder Cystonectae
- Family Physaliidae
- Family Rhizophysidae
Suborder Physonectae
- Family Agalmatidae
- Family Apolemiidae
- Family Athorybiidae
- Family Erennidae
- Family Forskaliidae
- Family Physophoridae
- Family Pyrostephidae
- Family Rhodaliidae
The genus Stepanyantsia is of unclear affiliations; it might belong in the Agalmatidae.
Haeckel's siphonophores
Ernst Haeckel described a number of siphonophores, and several plates from his Kunstformen der Natur (1904) depict members of the taxon:
 Plate 7. |
 Plate 59. |
 Plate 77. |
Footnotes
References
- Dunn, Casey (2005): Siphonophores. Retrieved 2008-JUL-08.
- Haddock, S.H.; Dunn, C.W.; Pugh, P.R. & Schnitzler, C.E. (2005): Bioluminescent and red-fluorescent lures in a deep-sea siphonophore. Science 309(5732): 263. PMID 16002609 doi:10.1126/science.1110441 (HTML abstract)
- Mapstone, Gillian M. (2009): Siphonophora (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa) of Canadian Pacific waters NRC Research Press, Ottawa ISBN 978-0-660-19843-9
- MarineSpecies.org (2008): Anthomedusae. Retrieved 2008-JUL-08.
- PinkTentacle.com (2008): Siphonophore: Deep-sea superorganism (video). Retrieved 2009-MAY-23.
External links
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 | Hydrozoa (Hydroids) (zoology) |
| Leptolinae |
| Kunstformen der Natur |
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