Saturday, November 10, 2007

The Shape of Life: Episode 2 - Life on the Move

From the stationary sponge to all the moving creatures in the world, cnidarians, a group that includes corals, sea anemones, sea pens and jellyfish, were the organisms that started it all. It is first thought that these organisms evolved with an evolutionary edge of motion in order to food, and indeed this is true.

Along with their non-hydrodynamic body shape, each species of jellyfish has a specific propulsion movement in order to obtain their food. When propelling through the water, they push the water towards their tentacles, allowing them to capture prey - a completely new innovation in comparison to the stationary sponge.

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