During a recent biodiversity survey in the southern Red Sea, several Cytaeis -like hydroid colonies displaying fluorescence were collected. The hydroids were epibiotic on small gastropod molluscs. Hydroids are the polyp stage of hydrozoans, relatives of jellyfish and fire corals, and they come in an astonishing variety of forms: delicate feather-like plumes, fine hair-like films, bushy tufts, or intricate trees growing on gorgonians, algae, and even other animals. View all Microscopy imagery of fluorescence of hydroids (Cytaeis sp.) collected in the Saudi Arabian Red Sea. Eilat Bay is located at the southernmost tip of Israel in the Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea). The list of hydroids currently known from there includes 51 species, and when extending it to the entire Red Sea, it includes 157 species belonging to 41 families. BILLARD distinguishes 3 groups: hydroids which penetrated from the Mediterranean, those which originated from the Red Sea, and those which may have entered from either end. Hydroids are colonies of tiny stinging jellies, best described as hundreds of inverted jellyfish attached to a feather- or seaweed-like base, known as the organism's polyp phase. Reproduction is achieved by releasing these fertile medusae into the plankton to feed and spawn. SCORESBIA DAIDALA Grows specifically on the Brown alga Zonaria crenata Erect hydroids occur relatively well-spaced along stolons that wander across the surface of the host blades
Eilat Bay is located at the southernmost tip of Israel in the Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea). The list of hydroids currently known from there includes 51 species, and when extending it to the entire Red Sea, it includes 157 species belonging to 41 families.
In the southern Red Sea, scientists have discovered what could be a new species of luminous polyps that light up the mud snails they piggyback on. These polyps or sea hydroids most likely belong to the genus Cytaeis, a team of researchers from Russia and Japan write in a recent study...
As we can see from the illustration, Hydroids Of The Red Sea has many fascinating aspects to explore.
