Abstract
IN some specimens of the Polyzoon Alcyonidium gelatinosum dredged last summer, I noticed that the colony, in place of being nearly homogeneous in colour and semi-translucent, as is usually the case, had a blotched appearance, caused by the presence of a number of small rounded spots of an opaque grayish-white or pale yellow colour. These average about 0.5 mm. in diameter, and are scattered irregularly through the colony. On teasing up a small part in sea-water, and on making a few rough sections of the living colony, I found that the opaque spots were cavities filled with fully developed active spermatozoa. No ova were visible in the polypides of any of the parts examined, so these colonies were evidently in the condition of sexually mature males. It at once occurred to me that this species of Alcyonidium might be unisexual—some colonies male and others female—the males being distinguishable when mature by their spotted appearance. The specimens were preserved for future examination.
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HERDMAN, W. The Reproductive Organs of Alcyonidium Gelatinosum . Nature 37, 213 (1887). https://doi.org/10.1038/037213a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/037213a0