More than 2200 species of the wild flora and fauna photographed in Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, Mexico and the surrounding area.
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Tunicates of Zihuatanejo
SUBPHYLUM TUNICATA
-Tunicates (Subphylum Tunicata)
-Sea Squirts (Class Ascidiacea)
-Order Stolidobranchia
-Family Styelidae
-Genus Symplegma
Symplegma is a genus of colonial sea squirts within the class Ascidiacea, commonly found in shallow tropical and subtropical marine environments. Species of Symplegma form thin, encrusting or lobed colonies composed of numerous small zooids embedded in a shared, often translucent tunic. The colonies may appear sheet-like or slightly raised and are frequently brownish, purplish, grey, or translucent, sometimes blending closely with the substrate. Each zooid has separate incurrent and excurrent siphons and feeds by filtering plankton and organic particles from the water through a well-developed pharyngeal basket. Like other ascidians, Symplegma species begin life as free-swimming tadpole larvae that settle and metamorphose into sessile adults. They commonly grow on rocks, mangrove roots, coral rubble, pilings, and boat hulls, contributing to biofouling communities while playing an ecological role in water filtration and nutrient cycling.
Description
• Symplegma is a genus of colonial sea squirts in the class Ascidiacea, subphylum Tunicata. These marine invertebrates often form clusters of small, sac-like individuals embedded in a shared or closely connected tunic. Individual zooids have inhalant and exhalant siphons that circulate seawater through the body. Colonies may appear as encrusting patches in shades of brown, grey, orange, or other colours, depending on the species.
Range
• Species of Symplegma occur in tropical and subtropical marine waters, particularly in shallow coastal environments. The genus is represented in the waters of Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, and the surrounding area.
Habitat
• Symplegma colonies attach to hard underwater surfaces, including rocks, coral rubble, shells, mangrove roots, docks, and boat hulls. They are commonly found in sheltered coastal waters, harbours, and reef habitats, where water movement supplies food particles.
Diet
• Symplegma are filter feeders that draw seawater through their inhalant siphons and trap bacteria, microscopic plankton, and suspended organic particles in a mucus-lined pharyngeal basket. The filtered water is expelled through the exhalant siphons.
Symplegma
Symplegma (Genus)
