The Cambridge natural history, Vol. 01 (of 10)Hickson, Sydney J. (Sydney John)
Science
The Cambridge natural history, Vol. 01 (of 10)
Hickson, Sydney J. (Sydney John)
Animals
The free extremity of the manubrium in many Scyphozoa is provided with four
triangular perradial lips, which may be simple or may become bifurcated or
branched, and have frequently very elaborate crenate edges beset with
batteries of nematocysts. In _Pelagia_ and _Chrysaora_ and other genera
these lips hang down from the manubrium as long, ribbon-like, folded bands,
and according to the size of the specimen may be a foot or more in length,
or twice the diameter of the disc.
In the Rhizostomata a peculiar modification of structure takes place in the
fusion of the free edges of the lips to form a suture perforated by a row
of small apertures, so that the lips have the appearance of long
cylindrical rods or tubes attached to the manubrium, and then frequently
called the "oral arms." The oral arms may be further provided with
tentacles of varying size and importance. In many Rhizostomata branched or
knobbed processes project from the outer side of the upper part of the oral
arms. These are called the "epaulettes."
[Illustration: FIG. 143.—_Ulmaris prototypus._ _g_, Gonad; _I_, interradial
canal; _M_, the fringed lip of the manubrium; _P_, perradial canal; _S_,
marginal sense-organ; _t_, tentacle. × 1. (After Haeckel.)]
The lumen of the manubrium leads into a large cavity in the disc, which is
usually called the gastric cavity, and this is extended into four or more
interradial or perradial gastric pouches. The number of these pouches is
usually four, but in this, as in {316}other features of their radial
symmetry, the jelly-fish frequently exhibit duplication or irregular
variation of the radii.[350]
The gastric pouches may extend to the margin of the disc, where they are
united to form a large ring sinus, or they may be in communication at the
periphery by only a very narrow passage (Cubomedusae). In the Discophora
the gastric pouches, however, do not extend more than half-way to the
margin, and they may be connected with the marginal ring-canal by a series
of branched interradial canals. Between the gastric pouches in these forms
branched perradial canals pass from the gastric cavity to the marginal ring
canal, and the system of canals is completed by unbranched "adradial"
canals passing between the perradials and interradials from the sides of
the gastric pouches to the ring-canal (Fig. 143).
In the Discophora there are four shallow interradial pits or pouches lined
by ectoderm on the under side of the umbrella-wall. As these pits
correspond with the position of the gonads in the gastric pouches they are
frequently called the "sub-genital pits." In the Stauromedusae and
Cubomedusae they are continued through the interradial gastric septa to the
aboral side of the disc, and they are generally known in these cases by the
name "interradial funnels." The functions and homologies of these
ectodermic pits and funnels are still uncertain.
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