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avatar_stemturtle

Bryozoan

Started by stemturtle, July 06, 2014, 10:41:34 PM

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stemturtle

July 06, 2014, 10:41:34 PM

Bryozoan

If you are interested in weird animals, this photo is for you. I am not aware of a toy moss animal, phylum Ectoprocta. 
The photo is of a live colony lifted out of a lake in Minnesota along the shoreline.  The colony was attached to the stem of a shrub.
The gelatinous matrix is about the size of a grapefruit.  Most bryozoan species are marine.

stargatedalek

#1
July 06, 2014, 10:57:42 PM
we get some of the marine forms here, invasive too

could certainly make for an interesting piece
and it fits so many settings, it could be scenery, invasive species awareness, etc.

brontodocus

#2
July 06, 2014, 11:14:12 PM
Brilliant idea for a thread, stemturtle! :) I believe sessile, colonial animals with individuals often less than a millimeter in diameter are too obscure for most manufacturers (but thinking about what Japanese brands sometimes do, there may be a chance to see a bryozoan figure, eventually). Oh, and of course I should mention one of the most famous bryozoan fossils, the "Hamburger Bryozoenchor" which would translate into "bryozoan choir of Hamburg" (from the late cretaceous):

stemturtle

#3
July 07, 2014, 02:25:22 PM

Ordovician Bryozoan Fossils

Thanks for your replies, stargatedalek and brontodocus. 
I appreciate the amusing photo of the "Bryozoan choir of Hamburg."

The photo above shows fossil bryozoans found in Minnesota.
These fossils motivated my interest in the living creatures.

stargatedalek

#4
July 07, 2014, 02:34:19 PM
there is so much variety amongst colony formations ^-^

Newt

#5
July 07, 2014, 04:29:25 PM
I think the live one is Pectinatella magnifica.  Senescent colonies wash up on the shores of my local reservoir every fall- sometimes a foot long.  I've never found a live one in situ.


My favorite fossil bryozoan is Archimedes:


http://www.indiana9fossils.com/Bryozoa/Illinois/11-20/lg10a.JPG

widukind

#6
July 07, 2014, 06:28:48 PM
Very interesting, i also have a collection of fossils  :)

stemturtle

#7
July 07, 2014, 06:49:58 PM
Quote from: Newt on July 07, 2014, 04:29:25 PM
I think the live one is Pectinatella magnifica.  Senescent colonies wash up on the shores of my local reservoir every fall- sometimes a foot long.  I've never found a live one in situ. ...

Thanks for your magnificent identification, Newt.
Pectinatella magnifica has been reported in Minnesota.

More info: http://eol.org/pages/601031/overview
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