HRAP Online Encyclopedia

Tunicates

Out of all of the invertebrates found in the tide pools as Haystack, tunicates are the mostly closely related to vertebrates. This means that a sea squirt is closer relative to humans than crabs, clams, or even intelligent octopuses! Tunicates can be solitary, colonial, or compound, meaning that they can live alone or in groups; when in groups they can be structured different ways. When exploring the tide pools look closely! Something that may look like a plant at first glance could be a tunicate.