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How does budding produce new Hydra individuals?
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cnidarian
A sea anemone from the genus Tealia attached to a rock.
In Hydra, a genus of freshwater invertebrate animals, budding is a common form of asexual reproduction.1
The process occurs through the following steps:
- Development: Finger-shaped outpushings of the parent's body wall begin to grow.1
- Differentiation: These outgrowths develop their own mouth and tentacles.1
- Separation: Once fully formed, the new individual nips off at the base, separating from the parent to exist as an independent organism.1
This method allows a single parent to produce genetically identical offspring, or clones, without the need for sexual fertilization.12