Glénan Archipelago, France, 14 meters, 2011, WBN
Camaret, France, 12 meters, 2011, WBN
Rade de Brest, France,8 meters, 2011, WBN
Rade de Brest, France, 4 meters, 2011, WBN
Bay of Lannion, France, 10 meters, 2011, WBN
Ascidia mentula is a solitary ascidian of about 5 to 18 cm in length, occasionnaly up to 30 cm. The test is smooth, cartilaginous and thick and it is generally pink. The body is ovoid and is attached to the substratum by the left side. The oral siphon is broad, terminal, eight-lobed and may have eight white markings. The atrial siphon is one-half of body length from the oral siphon. The pink sea-squirt lives attached to rocks, wrecks or shells. This species has a rather long lifespan, some of them living up to 7 years old.
Ascidia mentula is found from 5 m to depths of 200 m in the Atlantic Ocean from Norway to the Mediterranean Sea, in the North Sea and the English Channel.
Source : World Register of Marine Species
Dernière mise à jour 25-04-2024
Test : or tunic: thick layer secreted by the mantel containing cellulose and protecting the animal.
Oral siphon : opening by which water is drawn in the ascidian.
Atrial siphon : opening through which water is expelled.
Text : Anne Bay-Nouailhat © 2005 - 2024.
Photos : ©
Wilfried Bay-Nouailhat. Published with his kind permission.
Websites and reference works : Consult bibliography
Image satellite: © Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Earthstar Geographics, CNES/Airbus DS, USDA, USGS, AeroGRID, IGN, and the GIS User Community.
Données de distribution : Ascidia mentula in GBIF Secretariat (2019). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org on 2024-04-25.
Test : or tunic: thick layer secreted by the mantel containing cellulose and protecting the animal.
Oral siphon : opening by which water is drawn in the ascidian.
Atrial siphon : opening through which water is expelled.
Text : Anne Bay-Nouailhat © 2005 - 2024.
Photos : ©
Wilfried Bay-Nouailhat. Published with his kind permission.
Websites and reference works : Consult bibliography
Bay-Nouailhat A., September 2005, Description of Ascidia mentula, [On line] https://www.european-marine-life.org/32/ascidia-mentula.php, consulted on 2024 April 25.
Author
Project manager in marine environment
Professional diver - Naturalist
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