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Species
Styela plicata Lesuer, 1823
IUCN
NCBI
EOL Text
circum-global
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Source | http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=103936 |
Various authors list Styela plicata native or cryptogenic on the U.S. east coast (ISSG, NIMPIS 2002), but other authors consider the organism to be non-native in the western Atlantic (Da Rocha and Kremer 2005). The putative native range of the species is the the Indo-Pacific (Carlton and Ruckelshaus 1997, Lambert and Lambert 1998, Lambert 2001).Bingham (1992) and Carlton and Ruckelshaus (1997) list S. plicata as an introduced species in Florida. Styela plicata is a widespread and abundant component of the India River Lagoon fouling community, commonly encountered near inlets and also well into the interior of the lagoon (Mook 1983).
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Source | http://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Styela_plicata.htm |
Styela plicata has been introduced to the Northeast Pacific, with confirmed records in southern California. In addition, this species has been reported from multiple locations around the world, including the Atlantic coast of the United States, the Caribbean, Brazil, the Mediterranean, Senegal, South Africa, Somalia, China, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand (de Barros et al. 2009). Its native distribution remains unknown.
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Rights holder/Author | Frey, Melissa, Frey, Melissa, Marine Invaders of the NE Pacific |
Source | http://marineinvaders.lifedesks.org/pages/607 |
NIMPIS (2002) reports Styela plicata individuals commonly range from 40-70 mm in size and that they may reach 90 mm.Kott (1972) reports a life span of less than 1 year for S. plicata populations examined from Moreton Bay, Australia.
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Source | http://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Styela_plicata.htm |
In the IRL, Styela plicata may be mistaken for the co-occurring solitary tunicate Molgula occidentalis. This species is smaller and smoother than S. plicata, and side-by-side comparisons should easily differentiate these species. It is somewhat more difficult to distinguish S. plicata from the co-occurring congener (and fellow nonindigenous species) S. canopus (=S. parita). S. canopus is smaller, approximately 20-40 mm, and typically has externally striped siphons.
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Source | http://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Styela_plicata.htm |
In the Northeast Pacific, Styela plicata is most similar to to other styelid tunicates, including S. gibbsii (Stimpson, 1864), S. montereyensis (Dall, 1872), S. truncata Ritter, 1901, and two other non-native species found in the region, S. canopus (Savignyi, 1816) and S. clava Herdman, 1881.
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Rights holder/Author | Frey, Melissa, Frey, Melissa, Marine Invaders of the NE Pacific |
Source | http://marineinvaders.lifedesks.org/pages/607 |
Depth range based on 457 specimens in 1 taxon.
Water temperature and chemistry ranges based on 295 samples.
Environmental ranges
Depth range (m): 1 - 549
Temperature range (°C): 8.530 - 26.737
Nitrate (umol/L): 0.113 - 31.986
Salinity (PPS): 33.270 - 37.926
Oxygen (ml/l): 2.737 - 5.657
Phosphate (umol/l): 0.061 - 1.963
Silicate (umol/l): 0.805 - 15.554
Graphical representation
Depth range (m): 1 - 549
Temperature range (°C): 8.530 - 26.737
Nitrate (umol/L): 0.113 - 31.986
Salinity (PPS): 33.270 - 37.926
Oxygen (ml/l): 2.737 - 5.657
Phosphate (umol/l): 0.061 - 1.963
Silicate (umol/l): 0.805 - 15.554
Note: this information has not been validated. Check this *note*. Your feedback is most welcome.
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Source | http://www.iobis.org/mapper/?taxon_id=514837 |
Styela plicata is a sessile, benthic filter-feeder. The incurrent siphon takes water into a sieve-like pharyngeal basket that filters out food of the appropriate size class before water is pumped from the animal via the excurrent siphon.
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Styela plicata occurs alongside a number of different animal and algal taxa that comprise hard fouling intertidal and subtidal communities, although none of these associations are likely to be obligate.Burrowing molluscs are found in the tests of some solitary tunicates including Styela spp., and copepods, amphipods, shrimps, crabs, and other small crustaceans often take up residence within Styela and other ascidians (Kott 1997, Pearse 1947).Invasion History: Styela plicata is among the most common introduced ascidian species worldwide (Baker et al. 2004). It's present-day distribution is widespread but disjunct (da Rocha and Kremer 2005). The true native range of S. plicata is unknown but believed by several authors to be roughly the Indo-Pacific (Carlton and Ruckelshaus, 1997, Lambert and Lambert 1998, Lambert 2001).Although ballast water transport has been suggested as a potential invasion pathway, it may be of only minor importance. The short larval duration indicates that S. plicata is unlikely to have been transported across great distances either as free-living water column inhabitants or as larvae in ballast water. Long-distance transport as adult fouling inhabitants on ship hulls is considerably more likely as a recurring means of introduction. S. plicata is a common hull-fouling species in tropical and warm temperate ports throughout much of the world. Accidental transport in shipments of live bivalves is another probable introduction route (Carlton 1979, Lambert 2001).Despite considerable evidence supporting the contention that the organism is not native to U.S. waters, Styela plicata was originally described in 1823 from specimens collected from the hull-fouling community on a ship in Philadelphia PA. The organism was reported from U.S. coastal waters ranging from North Carolina to Texas in the 1880s, and had been reported from California by 1915. S. plicata had also been reported from Australia by the 1870s and from Brazil by 1883 (Fofonoff et al. 1999, Da Rocha and Kremer 2005). The presence of the organism in Chesapeake Bay was only conclusively documented when it was recovered on experimental fouling plates in 2002 (Fofonoff and Ruiz unpublished data). Potential to Compete With Natives: Styela plicata appears capable of outcompeting native species. Lambert and Lambert (1995) report that S. plicata appears to have replaced the native solitary tunicates Pyura haustor and Ascidia ceratodes in parts of their California range. Possible Economic Consequences of Invasion: Styela plicata is a widespread and common fouler buoys, pilings, nets and other floating or submerged manmade structures. It is also a common fouler of aquaculture cages, bags, and nets. If fouling is severe costly cleaning of culture gear is required to avoid still costlier loss of stocks (Da Rocha and Kremer 2005).
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In the IRL, Mook (1981, 1983) noted that Styela plicata was an abundant organism that dominated the fouling community, often to the exclusion of barnacles, in areas where large predatory fish were not present.
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Source | http://www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Styela_plicata.htm |