STRUCTURE OF OBELIA

B.Sc I Zoology Honours

By Dr. Joyita Das
Assistant Prof. Zoology
PC Vigyan College Chapra
JP University Bihar
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The students will learn :

✔ The general characteristic of Obelia.

✔ The two forms of Obelia.
✔ The structure of the two forms, polypoid and
medusoid forms.
 CLASSIFICATION
Phylum ………Coelenterata/ Cnidaria
Class …………. Hydrozoa
Order ………… Hydroida
Genus ……….. Obelia
Species ……... geniculata
OBELIA
 INTRODUCTION
• Obelia are marine, sedentary, colonial,
delicate and filamentous Coelenterates or
Cnidarians.
• Commonly called as sea fur.
• Found in shallow water of the seas and
oceans.
• It forms highly branched colonies.
• Usually attached to the rocks, stones, mollusc
shells, wooden piles and seaweeds.
OBELIA COLONY
 GENERAL CHARACTERS
• Size - it is 2-3 cms in height.
• Shape - fur like
• Colour - whitish or light brown in colour.
• Habit and Habitat - it is found in the
substratum of the seas and oceans upto a
depth of 80 metres.
• Distribution - it has a cosmopolitan
distribution.It is abundant in the Atlantic and
Pacific coastal waters.
 FORMS
• Obelia exists in two different forms in its life
history : Polypoid phase and Medusoid phase.
The polypoid phase is also called the hydroid
or hydranth phase.
POLYPOID PHASE

MEDUSOID PHASE
OBELIA COLONY
OBELIA COLONY
POLYPOID PHASE
 POLYPOID PHASE
• The polypoid colony or hydroid colony of Obelia
contains different types of individuals, called
zooids.All polyps are feeding stage.
• Each colony consists of a horizontal thread - like
branched root called hydrorhiza attached to the
substratum.The hydrorhiza gives off several
vertical stems called hydrocauli.
• Both hydrorhiza and hydrocauli are hollow
tubes.Each hydrocaulus gives off short lateral
branches in an alternate manner.
• Each lateral branch bears a zooid.
 STRUCTURE OF HYDRANTH
The polypoid or hydranth consists of perisarc,
coenosarc and zooids. These are :
Perisarc - it is the outermost, tough, yellow or
brown, transparent, non-living protein (chitin)
layer. It is secreted by epidermis and is presnt
over the coenosarc. Forms the exoskeleton.It
covers hydrorhiza, hydrocauli,their branches
an zooids.Forms hydrotheca around polyps
and gonotheca around the blastostyle.
 HYDRANTH (CONTD)
• Coenosarc - the inner tubular living portion of
all branches and zooids is called coenosarc. It
encloses a cavity or canal called the
gastrovascular cavity or enteron.Food is
distributed to the body through this canal.
• The wall of the gastrovascular cavity is formed
of outer epidermis and inner gastrodermis
with a layer of mesogloea in between.
 ZOOIDS
• A young Obelia colony has two types of
zooids, namely gastrozooids and gonoozooids.
A mature Obelia colony is trimorphic since it
contains three types of zooids. These are:
a)Gastrozooids,
b)Gonozooids
c)Medusae.
 GASTROZOOIDS
• These are feeding zooids.They are also called
polyps, hydranths or trophozooids.
• Provides colony with nourishment.
• Situated at the apex of main stem or branches
• It is cylindrical vase shaped structure attached by
its proximal end; distal end remains free.
• The conical elevation at the free distal end is the
manubrium. It has a terminal circular aperture
called the mouth.Its covering is hydrotheca.
• It has epidermis, gastrodermis and mesogloea.
 GONOZOOIDS
• These are non-feeding reproductive zooids.
• Gonangia occur in the axils of older hydranths.
• Each gonangium has :
i) a gonotheca
ii)a blastostyle bearing medusae
i) Gonotheca - perisarc surrounding the
blastostyle. Its distal opening is gonopore.
Ii)Blastostyle - it is a cylindrical,club shaped,hollow
extension of the coenosarc.It has no mouth or
tentacles.It bears many saucer shaped hollow buds
called medusae or gonophores.
GONANGIUM
 MEDUSAE
• These are modified zooids produced during spring
and summer seasons.
• These are produced as hollow buds from the
coenosarc of blastostyle by asexual budding.
• They are solitary and pelagic ie they swim freely
on the surface of water.
• Mature medusae bear gonads and reproduce
sexually. They are unisexual(dioecious);male and
female gonads are borne by separate individuals.
• A planula and hydrula larva exists in the life-cycle.
MEDUSOID PHASE
 STRUCTURE OF MEDUSAE
• It is tiny, circular and umbrella like.
• It is radially symmetrical.
• It has two distinct surfaces, outer convex
surface or exumbrellar surface and inner
concave surface or subumbrellar surface.
• From the centre of the subumbrellar surface
hangs a short, hollow manubrium having a
four-lobed oral aperture or mouth at its end.
 STUCTURE OF MEDUSAE (CONTD)
• Mouth opens into stomach inside manubrium.
• Four flagellated radial canals arise from the stomach and
join the circular canals at the margin of umbrella.
• A velum is formed by the inward folding of the free edge of
the umbrella, hence it is craspedote (like other Hydrozoans).
• Numerous solid,highly contractile tentacles arise from the
edge of the umbrella. Initially there are 16 tentacles having
four each of per-radial, inter-radial,ad-radial and sub-radial
canals.The number of tentacles increases in the adult stage.
• Each medusa has four gonads which may either be testes or
ovaries depending on the sex of the medusa.When the
mature gonads burst it liberates either the sperms or ova.
CANALS IN MEDUSA
 ALTERNATION OF GENERATIONS
• Obelia shows polymorphism.
• There is an alternaion of polypoid and
medusoid generations.
• Both the stages are diploid.
• Alternation of generation between two diploid
phases is known as metagenesis.
 QUESTIONS
1.Describe the structure of Obelia with ell labelled diagram.
MCQs.
1.The outermost tough transparent layer forming the
exoskeleton of Obelia is-
i) coenosarc ii) perisarc
Iii)episarc iv)mesosarc
2.The wall of gastrovascular cavity of Obelia has outer
epidermis,inner gastrodermis and a middle-
i) mesoderm ii) mesophyl
iii)mesogloea iv)mesohyl

ANS. 1.(ii) 2.(iii)

 REFERENCES
• Jordan EL and Verma PS(2015) Invertebrate
Zoology, S.Chand & Company;MRE,366-381.
• alamy.com
• biologydiscussion.com
• cronodon.com
• labnews.co.uk
• researchgate.net
• studyandscore.com
• wamas.org