tunicate
Layered, like onions
A tunicate is a marine invertebrate that filters water through its body, found attached to rocks, docks, or the seafloor.
Named for the tough outer covering (tunic) that encases the soft body.
Sea squirts are the most familiar tunicates.
Despite their blob-like adult form, tunicates are surprisingly close relatives of vertebrates—their larvae have a primitive spinal cord.
Filter-feeding marine invertebrate
Of the throat cavity
Profound biological restructuring
- settlementResolved dispute or colony
- sessileAttached at base
- colonialOf occupied territories
- buddingDeveloping from an outgrowth
free-swimming · attachment · substrate · recruitment · juvenile · adult
Relating to the sea
- benthicOf the sea bottom
- pelagicOf the open sea
- planktonicDrifting in water
- foulingMaking something unclean
reef · intertidal · subtidal · biofouling · invasive · encrusting · bioluminescence
Trapping particles from water
- suspensionTemporary halt or exclusion
- planktonDrifting marine microlife
- phytoplanktonPhotosynthetic aquatic drifters
- zooplanktonDrifting aquatic microorganisms
detritus · microorganisms · particulates · currents · nutrients · bacteria · filtration
Biological self-repair process
- pharmaceuticalManufactured medicinal compound
- genomeOrganism's total hereditary material
- embryologyStudy of prenatal development
sea-squirt
Filter-feeding marine invertebrate
pharyngeal
Of the throat cavity
metamorphosis
Profound biological restructuring
- settlementResolved dispute or colony
- sessileAttached at base
- colonialOf occupied territories
budding · free-swimming · attachment · substrate · recruitment · juvenile · adult
marine
Relating to the sea
- benthicOf the sea bottom
- pelagicOf the open sea
- planktonicDrifting in water
fouling · reef · intertidal · subtidal · biofouling · invasive · encrusting · bioluminescence
filter-feeding
Trapping particles from water
- suspensionTemporary halt or exclusion
- planktonDrifting marine microlife
- phytoplanktonPhotosynthetic aquatic drifters
zooplankton · detritus · microorganisms · particulates · currents · nutrients · bacteria · filtration
regeneration
Biological self-repair process
- pharmaceuticalManufactured medicinal compound
- genomeOrganism's total hereditary material
- embryologyStudy of prenatal development
tunicatevertebrate
Spinal column animal
fish · arthropod · jellyfish · cephalopod · crustacean
- tunica vaginalisTesticular serous sheath