Cnidarian cleavage patterns are highly variable, leading to two common types of blastulae. According to research, these are either a hollow coeloblastula or a solid stereoblastula.
Cnidarian Cleavage Patterns: A Detailed Look
Cnidarians, a group of aquatic animals including jellyfish, corals, and hydra, exhibit diverse cleavage patterns during their early embryonic development. This variation results in two primary types of blastulae:
- Coeloblastula: A hollow sphere of cells.
- Stereoblastula: A solid ball of cells.
The specific type of cleavage and resulting blastula can differ depending on the cnidarian species. As stated in the reference, cnidarians display highly variable cleavage patterns that result in either a hollow coelo- blastula (Martin et al. 1997) or a solid stereoblastula (Martin 1987). This variability reflects the evolutionary diversity within the phylum Cnidaria.
