Kingdom Animalia Genus Victorella Phylum Bryozoa Rank Species | Family Victorellidae Scientific name Victorella pavida Higher classification Victorella Order Ctenostomata | |
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Similar Victorella, Ctenostomata, Paludicella articulata, Tenellia adspersa, Paludicella | ||
Victorella pavida or trembling sea mat is a species of bryozoans found in shallow waters of low or fluctuating salinity, such as lagoons and estuaries. In summer (the growing season) it can have the appearance of velvet. The zooids may be from 0.3 mm to 1 mm in length. They live in colonies underwater attaching to stones. They feed using tiny hairs attached to their crown of tentacles to catch tiny particles flowing through the water, also known as "filter feeding".
Distribution
It is common in the Mediterranean Sea, and has also been reported in the North Sea (on the European Mainland), the Baltic, the Black Sea, India, Japan, Brazil, and the eastern United States. Swanpool, a coastal saline lagoon (Brackish Lake), in Falmouth, is the only location in the British Isles at which Victorella pavida is found; it is protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
