Photo 14354877, (c) Fabio Moretzsohn, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Fabio Moretzsohn

Attribution © Fabio Moretzsohn
some rights reserved
Uploaded by fmoretzsohn fmoretzsohn
Source iNaturalist
Associated observations

Photos / Sounds

What

Pleated Sea Squirt (Styela plicata)

Observer

fmoretzsohn

Date

November 24, 2014 01:50 PM CST

Description

I observed several specimens of this tunicate, Styela plicata, Plicate Sea Squirt, at University Beach. It is a common species locally.

There is a discussion whether it represents a native and cryptogenic species in the Gulf of Mexico, or an invasive species from the Indo-Pacific. See part of the discussion here:
https://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Styela_plicata.htm

Sizes