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Middle School Biology Department: G8 Dissected Hydras and Squids

April 27, 2023

Recently, the eighth-grade students learned about invertebrates in their biology class. To help them further understand the topic, the teachers arranged a series of experiments for them. On April 25th, the students observed and dissected hydras and squids.

From its outer appearance, the hydra looks somewhat like a flower. However, the hydra is actually a cnidarian, which has stinging cells and uses tentacles to take food into a hollow central cavity. The hydra uses these stinging cells to paralyze their prey, then catches them with its tentacles, and for self-defense against predators. Some groups of students were lucky enough to observe a budding hydra, which is a type of asexual reproduction.

The squid, although having tentacles like hydras, is not a cnidarian but a mollusk. Despite its soft body, the squid actually has a hard inner shell called its pen, which resembles a transparent plastic quill. Additionally, it has an ink sac where it stores ink that it can use to escape from its predators' attacks.

The animal kingdom is a diverse world of countless species, with 96% being invertebrates. When students visit an aquarium or restaurant, they may encounter creatures they learned from their textbooks!

Written by 8-7 Teresa

Supervised by Rongzhang Hu

Pictures by Ming Liu

Edited by Serene Yang, Yilin Zhu (Intern), Niall Keenan