The sea squirt is a tunicate living on reefs, pilings and other hard surfaces in shallow waters. Most sea squirts live underwater, permanently fixed. But some can move up to 1.5 cm per day. They can live on a ship’s hull, rock, seashell, or pier pilings. Sea squirts are animals that can live alone or in a colony. The subphylum Tunicata includes the tunicate. Tunicates are small marine animals found throughout seas worldwide. Where is Tunicin found? Tunicates have a tough outer “tunic” made of polysaccharide. Sea squirts range from 0.5 to 10 cm in size. One end is firmly fixed. The lower surface has root-like extensions to grip.
Sea squirts have two siphons to pull water into and expel it from their body. When disturbed, they may eject water, hence the name. They eat by taking in water through the inhalant siphon. Plankton and particles are trapped by mucus and passed to the stomach. Waste goes out through the exhalant siphon.
The young sea squirt, born similar to a tadpole with a backbone and tail, explores the ocean. It finds a place to attach using its head sucker. Then it eats its brain and loses its tail. Sea squirts automatically protect themselves. Despite plant-like appearance, they are related to vertebrates. Most species live in warm, tropical waters. After ability to squirt, sea squirts are famous for “eating brains”. They spawn eggs and sperm into the water. The eggs develop into larvae over three days.
Sea squirts range in color. Over 2,300 types exist. Subspecies and environment affect color, shape and size. Sea squirts willingly give up the nervous system. Brains use huge energy when predicting actions and moving. So they eat their brains to save power once stationary. Tunicates “wear” tunics as protection. They like attaching to hard things. If squeezed, they shoot water from siphons. While rubbery, they are advanced with a spine. Few Americans eat them. Many are poisonous, limiting food use.
Are sea squirts edible?
Sea squirts are omnivores. They eat phyto- and zooplankton, bacteria, dead animal debris, and dead plant debris from the water current. Only plants and some bacteria and algae are producers. Sea squirts are consumers as they eat other living things.
Some species of sea squirts are edible and can be eaten raw, cooked, dried or pickled. In Chile, the edible local sea squirt is called piure. One group of sea squirts forms huge free-floating colonies shaped like socks, reaching 60 feet in length.
Sea squirts are unusual. When sea squirt larvae go through metamorphosis, they reduce their cerebral ganglion. Sea squirts have nerve cells, intestines and a tubelike heart similar to humans.
Sea squirts spend life attached to hard objects after reaching maturity. They filter seawater through slits, taking in food and water and letting out waste. Sea squirts come in various colors and shapes. Their bodies are protected by a thin membrane rather than a skeleton. They are normally cylindrical but can be round or bell-shaped.
How deep is the sea squirt?
Sea squirts are small, soft-bodied marine animals. They live attached to hard surfaces like ships, docks, rocks, and shells. Sea squirts eat by filtering plankton and debris from water pumped through their bodies. Their color varies from beiges to deep purples. Over 3,000 species exist.
Sea squirts play ecological roles. They help filter water and remove excess nutrients. Although sessile, some species move up to 1.5 cm daily by attaching and letting go of surfaces. Sea squirts can form colonies 13 ft long. As they break down, released oxygen can foul surrounding water.
Sea squirts are actually more akin to vertebrates than sponges or coral. Their appearance resembles plants, hence names like “Sea Grapes.” Packs of them look like grape bunches. They belong to a group called Tunicates – sac-like filter feeders living on plankton.
Starting as eggs, sea squirt larvae resemble tadpoles. They have spinal cords, eyes, tails for swimming, and primitive brains. The brains help them move through water. Sea squirts willingly give up their nervous systems. Maintaining brains expends much energy, which they conserve by eating their own nervous systems.
Sea squirts exhibit biodiversity with over 3,000 species in oceans worldwide, from shallow waters to the deep sea. They often attach to ships, allowing travel to new areas. Sea squirts are usually hermaphroditic, producing eggs and sperm. Eggs remain inside while sperm from other squirts enter through siphons, allowing external fertilization.
Why are sea squirts invasive?
Sea squirts are tunicates. Tunicates have firm, rubbery outer coverings called tunics. Of nine types of sea squirts on Cape Cod, six species are invasive. Carman researches a genus called Didemnum. Didemnum forms dense mats of linked individuals. As organisms feed on algae and bacteria, they push water in and out of pipes. This gave them the name “sea squirt.”
Didemnum vexillum is a colonial sea squirt. It is native to Japan but invasive in Europe, North America and New Zealand. It goes by names like sea vomit, marine vomit, pancake batter tunicate or carpet sea squirt.
Tunicates live in underwater colonies. They use glue-like substances to attach to ocean floors, piers and plants. Once settled, they are hard to remove. Oyster farmers continually find equipment covered in pancake batter tunicates. The sea squirt eats plankton. It spreads rapidly in warm water, competing for food and space. Plans exist to eradicate it before further spread.
Fourteen tunicate species invaded California last century, eight in the past 22 years. Similar invasion rates occur elsewhere. Some impacted ecology or economy. The sea squirt reached Australia in 1972 and New Zealand in 2005. It spawns daily in warm water above 15°C. It competes with filter feeders for food and space, disrupting ecosystems and aquaculture.
Tunicates attach to mussels. They either rob nutrients and water, or rip mussels off ropes. Tunicates look like giant orange slugs. Several species recently grew out of control due to warming water temperatures. Just one tunicate can produce 10,000 more.