Tentaculata
From Free net encyclopedia
{{Taxobox
| color = pink
| name = Tentaculata
| image = LightRefractsOf comb-rows of ctenophore Mertensia ovum.jpg
| image_width = 200px
| image_caption = Mertensia ovum
| regnum = Animalia
| phylum = Ctenophora
| classis = Tentaculata
| classis_authority = Eschscholtz, 1825
| subdivision_ranks = Orders
| subdivision =
Cestida
Cydippida
Lobata
Platyctenida
}}
Tentaculata is a class of comb jellies. A common feature in this class is to have two feathery tentacles, which can be retracted into specialised sheaths. In some species, the primary tentacles are reduced and they have smaller, secondary tentacles.
The group includes the small, oval sea gooseberries (genus Pleurobrachia), found on both Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The more flattened species of the genus Mnemiopsis, about 4 inches long (10 cm), is common on the upper Atlantic coast; it has a large mouth and mainly feeds on larval molluscs and copepods. This species is brilliantly luminescent. The similar, but larger, genus Leucothea is abundant on the Pacific coast. Venus' girdle (genus Cestum) is a flattened, ribbon-like form reaching over 3 feet (90 cm) in length, and found in tropical waters.Template:Invertebrate-stub