Plural form of actinula; multiple small larval stages of hydrozoans in their early anemone-like form.
From Latin plural of 'actinula.' The standard pluralization of the zoological term for multiple individuals at this developmental stage.
When you're studying hydrozoan reproduction and you find dozens of actinulae swimming around a petri dish, it looks like someone scattered tiny, translucent sea anemone replicas everywhere—they're all clones or siblings at the same developmental stage!
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