Description

Description. Colonies form a diffuse, sparsely branching network composed of spindle-shaped zooids joined end to end with occasional side branches (Fig. 3 a). Zooids are flattened and attached firmly to the substratum, with mean length of 860 µm long and width of 380 µm (n = 20; SD length = 12; SD width = 4), and a length to width ratio of 2 – 3.5. The lophophore bears 12 – 14 tentacles. The simple gut consists of a narrow esophagus leading progressively to a small gizzard, a large stomach and a small distal area for the temporary storage of digested remains. The hibernaculum is shorter and broader than the standard zooid, with thickened walls and one or more dark portals marking the site of its former attachment to the colony (Fig. 3 c). Dorsolateral lobe-like extensions of certain zooids develop into nautizooids (Fig. 3 a, b) which eventually detach and swim away under the power of an extended lophophore.

Common Names

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Bryozoa

Class: Gymnolaemata

Order: Ctenostomatida

Family: Hislopiidae

Genus: Timwoodiellina

Species: Natanella natans Wood & Okamura, 2017