The tunicate is thought to be the origin of all backboned animals. Here are some amazing Tunicate Facts that you should definitely give a read!
Tunicate Facts
1. ) Tunicates are also commonly called ascidians or squirts since, after being removed from water, they expand and release the water that circulated inside the body. Pelagic tunicates are also known as salps.
2. ) Amphipod crustaceans are tiny and was discovered in the Herdmania tunicates of Raja Ampat, Indonesia. It was called Leucothoe eltoni , after Sir Elton John in 2015, because the scientist who developed it was a big fan of John’s music.
The Herdmania tunicates from Raja Ampat, Indonesia, were called Leucothoe eltoni , after the singer Sir Elton John.
3. ) The tunicate can be an important lifesaver. Many anti-tumor compounds have been discovered in the tunicate’s tissues. One of them was the first marine-derived substance to be tested in the phase I and II of clinical trials.
4. ) The life within the sea is feasible because of the pelagic salp’s effective filter feeding. This is why it is able to reproduce faster and reach greater densities than other gelatinous plank herbivores.
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5 ) Many species of invasive tunicates have been established throughout the United States seaways, where they have enormous economic and ecological effects upon the surface of oyster shells and almost everything else in the vicinity.
6 ) Tunicates have two major openings. They take in seawater via an inhalant siphon. This is followed by filtering out oxygen and food particles through the branchial basket prior to releasing the water via their exhalant siphon.
7. ) Larval tunicates appear more like a backboned animal adults. The larvae of these species are tadpole-like, and possess a notochord that is thought to be the earliest form of vertebra.
8. ) Tunicates get their name from the flexible, yet firm body covering , also known as an a-line tunic.
9. ) Tunicates that hunt for prey that was found at depths of 12,000 feet in Monterey, California, has special lips that take in prey that is swimming.
10 ) Many tunicates can be eaten and can be consumed raw cooked, dried, or even pickled. In Chile the local tunicate that is edible is called piure.
11 ) One tunicate group called pyrosomes consists of a free-floating group of tunicates which form the shape of a massive sock. It can be up to sixty feet long.
12. ) Sea sapphires are common and stunning pelagic copepod crustaceans that resemble iridescent scales of fish. Females are housed in salps, an arrangement believed to contribute to their higher survival rate than single copepods.
