What is the free-swimming stage in the sponge life cycle?

What is the free-swimming stage in the sponge life cycle?

two stages in life cycle: polyp and medusa The zygote goes through multiple cell divisions to form a free-swimming, ciliated larval stage, Planula. The planula larva swims and feeds for many months during the winter before it settles to te bottom, attaches, and forms the next stage known as the polyp stage.

What do you call the free-swimming larval form of sponges?

So, the correct answer is ‘Parenchymula’

Why is being a hermaphrodite an advantage for a sponge?

How is being hermaphroditic an advantage to sponges? They produce both male and female gametes and are both sexual and asexual.

Why is hermaphroditism beneficial in sponges even though they rarely self fertilize?

Why is hermaphroditism beneficial in sponges even though they rarely self-fertilize? They all produce eggs so the rate of successful fertilization is greater than it would be if only half of them produced eggs.

Why do some sponges feel spongy?

These sponges feel soft and springy to the touch because they have soft skeletons made of flexible fibrous spongin. Other sponges have a stiff skeleton that feels prickly because it is made of hard, sliver-like spicules, which are also built by the amoebocytes.

What is the advantage of a folded or convoluted body wall in sponges?

What is the advantage of a folded or convoluted body wall in sponges? It increases surface area for absorptionof nutrients and improved gas exchange.

What is the significance of the larva?

A larva sometimes functions as a food gatherer—in many species the larval stage occurs at a time when food is abundant—and has a well-developed alimentary system. It stores food so that the transformation to the adult stage can occur. Some larvae function in both dispersion and nutrition.

What is sponge larva?

Sponge larvae are relatively uniform in their morphology. They are always ciliated, but there can be regions of longer cilia or areas that lack cilia completely. There are two general types of sponge larvae, solid parenchymella larvae and hollow amphiblastula larvae. Sizes range from 50 pm to 5 mm in length.

Why do sponges release larvae?

These so-called “gemmules” are expelled from the adult sponge and, in some marine species, serve as a normal reproductive process or, sometimes, as a means to carry the sponges over periods of unfavourable conditions when the adults degenerate; e.g., drought, temperature extremes.

Why sponges are considered hermaphrodite?

Option A: Sponges are Hermaphrodite because the male and female gametes are produced by the same sponge. Therefore, this is the correct option.

How do sponges reproduce when they can’t walk or swim?

Sponge Reproduction Asexual reproduction occurs by budding.

Would gemmules or larvae be better at distributing?

Would gemmules or larvae be better at distributing a population of sponges through an area? Explain why. Larvae would be better since their flagella enable them to swim away from the parent sponge and produce another sponge in a new location.

How does a sponge protect itself from predators?

Sponges do not have nervous systems that would allow them to respond to changes in their environment. However, many sponges protect themselves by producing toxins that make them unpalatable or poisonous to potential predators.

Why do scientists consider sponges to be the simplest most basal animals?

Sponges are considered to be one of the simplest animals, primarily because their bodies are not organized in organ systems or even tissues. Rather, sponges are made up of a grouping of cells that work together to contribute to meeting the daily needs of the sponge.

What is the advantage of having free swimming larva stage?

A free swimming larval stage allows the tunicate the best chance for maturing through self positioning as they do not move in the adult stage.

What are the special advantages of having an aquatic larval stage in the life cycle?

The presumed advantages of such larvae include the avoidance of competition for resources with adults, temporary reduct~on of benthic mortality while in the plankton, decreased likelihood of inbreeding in the next generation, and increased ability to withstand local extinction However, the direct~on of evolutionary …

Do sponges have larvae?

Sponge larvae are relatively uniform in their morphology. They are always ciliated, but there can be regions of longer cilia or areas that lack cilia completely. There are two general types of sponge larvae, solid parenchymella larvae and hollow amphiblastula larvae.

What is larva of sponges?

After reproduction, sponge produces larva called as stomoblastula. It has a mouth and feeds on nurse cells within mesogloea and grows for a few days. Stomoblastula develops into an amphiblastula by inverting inside out and brings the flagellated cells on the outer surface, so that the larva can swim in water.