Cristatella mucedo

Cristatella mucedo
Cristatella mucedo creeping over a stem of water weed; a) polypides with horseshoe-shaped crown of tentacles b) statoblasts seen through the tissues c) muscular sole by means of which the animal creeps d) stem of water weed
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Ectoprocta
Class:	Phylactolaemata
Family:	Cristatellidae
Genus:	Cristatella
Species:	C. mucedo
Binomial name
Cristatella mucedo Cuvier, 1798

Cristatella mucedo is a bryozoan in the Cristatellidae family, and the only species of the Cristatella genus.^[1]

Distribution

The species can be found in north-eastern North America (Canada,^[2] and United States) Northern Europe, including United Kingdom, Norway, Finland, and the Netherlands from sea level to 1,116 metres (3,661 ft).^[3]

Habitat and Ecology

The species prefers cold climate waters. They live in statoblastic colonies.^[4] The habitat is either lotic or lentic.^[5] including new lakes such as gravel pits.

Variations

The species can come in two variations: homogeneous and haplotypes.^[6]

References

1. Cristatella mucedo
2. Species list of Albertas bryozoans on Aquatic Invertebrates of Alberta
3. Karen Anna Økland (October 2000). "Freshwater bryozoans (Bryozoa) of Norway: Distribution and ecology of Cristatella mucedo and Paludicella articulata". Mendeley.com.
4. Michiel van der Waaij (July 2009). "Freshwater bryozoans or moss animals". Microscopy-UK.org.
5. Laura Uotila & Jukka Jokel (2006-05-30). "Variation in reproductive characteristics of colonies of the freshwater bryozoan Cristatella mucedo". Onlinelibrary.wiley.com.
6. Joanna R Freeland, Chiara Romualdi, and Beth Okamura (2000-03-06). "Gene flow and genetic diversity: a comparison of freshwater bryozoan populations in Europe and North America". Heredity. Check date values in: |access-date= (help);