Pyrosoma is a genus of pyrosomes, marine colonial tunicates in the class Thaliacea.[1][2] It contains four pelagic species found in temperate waters worldwide. Pyrosomes are filter feeders that uniquely use a type of continuous jet propulsion, generated by individual zooids, to slowly move forward while grazing; the species P. atlanticum has the highest known food clearance rate among zooplankton grazers. Colonies can reach lengths of up to 20 m (66 ft).[3] *Pyrosoma atlanticum* has special light organs that contain glowing bacteria (*Photobacterium* sp.), and these bacteria make the colony glow blue-green in the ocean.[4]
| Pyrosoma | |
|---|---|
| |
| Pyrosoma atlanticum | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Subphylum: | Tunicata |
| Class: | Thaliacea |
| Order: | Pyrosomatida |
| Family: | Pyrosomatidae |
| Subfamily: | Pyrosomatinae |
| Genus: | Pyrosoma Péron, 1804 [1] |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Species
editThe genus contains four recognized species:[1]
- Pyrosoma aherniosum Seeliger, 1895
- Pyrosoma atlanticum Péron, 1804
- Pyrosoma godeauxi van Soest, 1981
- Pyrosoma ovatum Neumann, 1909
References
edit- ^ a b c d WoRMS. "Pyrosoma Péron, 1804". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
- ^ Péron, F. (1804). "Mémoire sur le nouveau genre Pyrosoma". Annales du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle. 4 (12): 437–446.
- ^ Henschke, Natasha; Pakhomov, Evgeny A.; Kwong, Lian E.; Everett, Jason D.; Laiolo, Leonardo; Coghlan, Amy R.; Suthers, Iain M. (May 2019). "Large vertical migrations of Pyrosoma atlanticum play an important role in active carbon transport". Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences. 124 (5): 1056–1070. doi:10.1029/2018JG004918. hdl:10453/139295.
- ^ Berger, A., Blackwelder, P., Frank, T., Sutton, T., Pruzinsky, N., Slayden, N., & Lopez, J. V. (2021). "Bioluminescent Symbionts of Pyrosoma atlanticum". *Frontiers in Marine Science, 8*, 606818. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.606818
