This is an aceol flatworm! We feed on organic matter stuck on coral polyp surfaces
This is an aceol flatworm! We feed on organic matter stuck on coral polyp surfaces
Corals are animals! And very charismatic ones, too!
WHAT IS A CORAL?
Hei! I am a coral organism :D
Some also call us "super organisms!"
Because a coral organism is made up of genetically identical units called POLYPS
Hei!
Coral Polyp Information Card | 2024, Digital + Watercolor
WHAT IS A POLYP?
we have tentacles to catch food >:D
we have mouths to eat the food we catch
& "hands" called COENOSARCs that hold us together
We hold hands like this :)
NOW LET'S INTRODUCE YOU TO ZOOXANTHELLAE
mouth :DD
zooxanthellae are microscopic organisms that live in coral tissue
we share a
symbiotic relationship
with polyps,
providing essential nutrients through photosynthesis!
zooxanthellae
give polyps their color
zooxanthellae pattern!
Coral Polyp Character Designs | 2024, Digital + Watercolor
healthy polyps are VIBRANT
This is an aceol flatworm! They feed on organic matter stuck on coral polyp surfaces!
Octocoral polyps have 8 tentacles :)
Corals form skeletons out of CaCo3, Calcium Carbonate, otherwise known as the "carbonate cup"
Coral Zooxanthellae Pattern Units | 2024, Digital + Watercolor
and form polyp colonies like this:
and form polyp colonies like this:
and form polyp colonies like this:
Coral Polyp Sticker Designs | 2024, Digital + Watercolor
Coral Polyp Pattern Units | 2024, Digital + Watercolor
or this...
or this...
that culminate into the
structures we see and recognize as "coral"
now that we have an intro to polyps & zooxanthellae
let's talk life histories...
of Cnidaria:
Cnidaria: A phylum consisting of soft-bodied stinging organisms, such as corals, sea anemones, and jellyfish.
They are described as "stinging" because all Cnidaria possess an organelle called the "nematocyst," which is like a harpoon in a sac that fires for defense or feeding.
Hydrozoa Life Cycle Diagram | 2024, Digital + Watercolor