Budding in hydra
A bud grows on the parent and separates.
A bump on a hydra
A hydra is a tiny animal that lives in water. Under a lens, a small bump can be seen on its body. Over some days the bump grows bigger.
What do you think happens to the bump in the end?
What this lesson covers
The idea
In budding, repeated cell division at a specific site on the parent body produces a small outgrowth, the bud, which enlarges and separates from the parent to live independently.
A bump on a hydra
A hydra is a tiny animal that lives in water. Under a lens, a small bump can be seen on its body. Over some days the bump grows bigger.
What do you think happens to the bump in the end?
- It separates and lives as a new hydra
- It stays as a lump for ever
- It falls off and dies
Watch a bud grow
Press Next step to follow the bud from start to finish.
A bud becomes a new animal
The bump was a bud. It formed at one place on the parent, where cells divided again and again. The bud grew bigger and then left the parent to live on its own.
In budding, repeated cell division at a specific site on the parent body produces a small outgrowth, the bud. The bud enlarges and separates from the parent to live independently.
Notes
In budding, cell division at one site makes a bud that enlarges, separates and lives independently.
Check yourself
What is the small outgrowth on a hydra's body called?
How does a bud form on a hydra?
What does the bud do at the end?
How many buds can one often see on a hydra?
- A bud — correct. Yes!
- A spore. Spores are formed by moulds on fungal hyphae. The outgrowth on a hydra is a bud.
- A pollen grain. A pollen grain carries the male gametes of a flower. The outgrowth on a hydra is a bud.
- By two parents joining their cells. Budding is asexual and involves one parent. The bud grows from the parent's body by cell division.
- By repeated cell division at a specific site on the parent body — correct. Yes!
- The whole parent body splits into two halves. The bud is a small outgrowth at one site, not the whole body splitting.
- Stays joined and never lives on its own. The bud separates from the parent to live independently.
- Shrinks back into the parent. The bud enlarges, and then it separates from the parent.
- Enlarges and separates to live independently — correct. Yes!
- Many, growing at the same time — correct. Yes!
- Just one, and only after the last one has gone. One can often see many buds growing on the parent's body at the same time.
- None, since a hydra makes new hydras only from seeds. A hydra reproduces by budding, not by seeds.