''Aplidium elegans'', the sea-strawberry, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of colonial sea squirt, a

benthic The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...

tunicate Tunicates are marine invertebrates belonging to the subphylum Tunicata ( ). This grouping is part of the Chordata, a phylum which includes all animals with dorsal nerve cords and notochords (including vertebrates). The subphylum was at one time ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Polyclinidae Polyclinidae is a family of tunicates in the order Aplousobranchia. Genera The World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive cata ...

and class

Ascidiacea Ascidiacea, commonly known as the ascidians or sea squirts, is a paraphyletic class in the subphylum Tunicata of sac-like marine invertebrate filter feeders. Ascidians are characterized by a tough outer test or "tunic" made of the polysacchari ...

. Bay-Nouailhat A., September 2005, Description of Aplidium elegans, Available on line at http://www.european-marine-life.org/32/aplidium-elegans.php, consulted on 02 March 2019. It is native to shallow waters in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. It is also found in between France and the United Kingdom.

Description

''Aplidium elegans'' form firm, flattened globular masses, that look like pink cushions from 3 to 4 cm long. Gabriele, M.; Bellot, A.; Gallotti, D.; Brunetti, R. (1999). Sublittoral hard substrate communities of the Northern Adriatic Sea. Cah. Biol. Mar. 40(1): 65-76 The color is striking, with large white

papilla Papilla (Latin, 'nipple') or papillae may refer to: In animals * Papilla (fish anatomy), in the mouth of fish * Papilla (worms), small bumps on the surface of certain worms * Basilar papilla, a sensory organ of lizards, amphibians and fish * ...

e around the inhalant siphons of the

zooids A zooid or zoöid is an animal that is part of a colonial animal. This lifestyle has been adopted by animals from separate unrelated taxa. Zooids are multicellular; their structure is similar to that of other solitary animals. The zooids can ...

and deep pink coloration of the colony. The arrangement of the zooids in the colony gives a meandering pattern, with cloacal canals between zooids. The zooids are embedded in a common test and grouped around sinuous, irregular cloacal canals. The oral siphons are slightly prominent and bordered of eight small white lobes. Colonial ascidians, like other benthic invertebrates show great morphological variability in terms of shape, size and color in response to both genetic characteristics and local environmental conditions.Murugan R, Ananthan G., Arunkman A. (2018) Aplousobranchia ascidians in Andaman and Nicobar Islands: a combined morphological and molecular discrimination. Mitochondrial DNA Part A, 29, 879-884.

Distribution and habitat

''Aplidium elegans'' is found in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and the English Channel. The colonies are found on rocks in waters 5 meters to 20 meters deep. Also can be found on moderately exposed rocky sites, usually with moderate tidal streams, attached to rocks. The colony is around 50mm broad and 15mm thick.

Biology

''Aplidium elegans'' colony is made up of a couple different parts. The zooid is the individual animal, and in a colony, there are multiple zooids. The colony has a test or tunica which is a thick layer secreted by the mantle, containing

cellulose Cellulose is an organic compound with the chemical formula, formula , a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to many thousands of glycosidic bond, β(1→4) linked glucose, D-glucose units. Cellulose is an important s ...

and protecting the animal. Every zooid has an oral siphon, which is an opening through which water is drawn into the ascidian to collect nutrients. Each individual also has a

cloaca A cloaca ( ), : cloacae ( or ), or vent, is the rear orifice that serves as the only opening for the digestive (rectum), reproductive, and urinary tracts (if present) of many vertebrate animals. All amphibians, reptiles, birds, cartilagin ...

through which water is expelled.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4925941 Polyclinidae Animals described in 1872