TUNICATA 



193 



Com- 



pouud 



Aseid- 



IHids formed on stolons which are vascular outgrowths from the pos- 

 terior end of the body, containing prolongations from the ectoderm, 

 mesoderm, and endoderm of the ascidiozooid. Branchial sac not 

 folded ; internal longitudinal bars usually absent; stigmata straight ; 

 tentacles simple. This family contains three genera: Ectciiuisct'li" 

 (Herdman), with internal longitudinal bars in branchial sac ; Clavd- 

 ina (Savigny), with intestine extending behind branchial sac ; 

 and Perophora (Wiegnuini), with intestine alongside branchial sac. 



Family II. ASCIDIIDJE. Solitary fixed Ascidians with gelatinous 

 test ; branchial aperture usually eight-lotted, atrial aperture usually 

 six-lobed. Branchial sac not folded; internal longitudinal bars 

 usually present ; stigmata straight or curved ; tentacles simple. 

 This family is divided into three sections : 



Sub-family 1. HYI-OBYTHISJE. Branchial sac with no internal 

 longitudinal bars. One genus, Hypobythius (Moseley). 



Sub-family 2. ASCIDIX.E. Stigmata straight. Many genera, of 

 which the following are the more important : dona (Fleming), 

 dorsal languets present; Ascidia (Lim\iuus,=Phallusia, Saviguy), 

 dorsal lamina present (see figs. 1 to 10) ; Ekodosoma (Ehrenberg), 

 anterior part of test modified to form operculum ; Abyssascidia 

 (Herdman), intestine on right side of branchial sac. 



Sub-family 3. CORELLIN*^;. Stigmata curved. Three genera : 

 Cordla (Alder and Hancock), test gelatinous, body sessile ; '"//,;- 

 ascidia (Herdman), test gelatinous, body pedunculated ; Chdyo- 

 soma (Brod. and Sow.), test modified into horny plates. 



Family III. CYNTHIID.E. Solitary fixed Ascidians, usually with 

 leathery test ; branchial and atrial apertures usually both four-lobed. 

 Branchial sac longitudinally folded ; stigmata straight ; tentacles 

 simple or compound. This family is divided into three sections : 



Sub-family 1. STYELIN^E, not more than four folds on each side 

 of branchial sac ; tentacles simple. The more important genera are 

 Styda (JIacleay), stigmata normal, and Bathyoncus (Herdmau), 

 stigmata absent or modified. 



Sub-family 2. CYNTHISJE, more than eight folds in branchial 

 sac; tentacles compound; 

 body sessile. The chief 

 genus is Cynthia, (Sa- 

 vigny), with a large 

 number of species. 



Sub-family 3. BOL- 

 TEXIX.E, more than eight 

 folds in branchial sac ; 

 tentacles compound ; 

 body pedunculated (fig. 

 18, A). The chief genera 

 are Boltenia (Savigny), 

 branchial aperture four- 

 lobed, stigmata normal ; 

 and Culcohus (Herd- FIG. 

 man), branchial aper- 

 ture with less than four 

 lobes, stigmata absent or 

 modified (fig. 18, B). 

 This last is a deep-sea 

 genus discovered by the "Challenger" expedition (see !j}. 



Family IV. MOLGULID.E. Solitary Ascidians, sometimes not 

 fixed ; branchial aperture six-lobed, atrial four-lobed. Test usually 

 iucrusted with sand. Branchial sac longitudinally folded ; stigmata 

 more or less curved, usually arranged in spirals; tentacles compound. 

 The chief genera are Mo'lrjida (Forbes), with distinct folds in the 

 branchial sac, and Eugyra (Aid. and Hanc.), with no distinct folds, 

 but merely broad internal longitudinal bars in the branchial sac. 

 In some of the Mol'jitlidx (genus Anurdla, Lacaze-Duthiers, 20) 

 the embryo does not become converted into a tailed larva, the 

 development being direct, without metamorphosis. The embryo 

 when hatched assumes gradually the adult structure, and never 

 shows the features characteristic of larval Ascidiaus, such as the 

 urochord and the median sense-organs. 



Sub-order 2. Ascidise Composite. 



Fixed Ascidians which reproduce by gemmation, so as to form 

 colonies in which the ascidiozooids are buried in a common invest- 

 ing mass and have no separate tests. This is probably a somewhat 

 artificial assemblage formed of two or three groups of Ascidians 

 which produce colonies in which the ascidiozooids are so intimately 

 united that they possess a common test or investing mass. This 

 is the only character which distinguishes them from the Clavclinidse, 

 but the property of reproducing by gemmation separates them 

 from the rest of the Ascidix Simpliccs. The Ascidiss Composites 

 may be divided into the following families : 



Family I. DISTOMID.E. Ascidiozooids divided into two regions, 

 thorax and abdomen ; testes numerous ; vas deferens not spirally 

 coiled. The chief genera are Distoma (Gaertner) ; Distaplia (Delia 

 Valle) ; Coldla, (Herdman), forming a pedunculated colony (see fig. 

 19, A) in which the ascidiozooids develop incubatory pouches, 

 connected with the peribranchial cavity, in which the embryos 

 undergo their development (/7) ; and Chondrostadiys (Maedonald). 



i-f i I 



S. Cnlcolus willcm&si. A. Entire body, 

 natural size. B. Part of branchial sac mag- 

 nified, at, atrial aperture ; 6r, branchial aper- 

 ture ; ped, peduncle ; or /, slight fold of braneh- 

 ial sac ; i I, internal longitudinal bar ; mh, mesh ; 

 sp, calcareous spicules in vessels ; tr, transv. r^- 

 vessels. (After Herdman, Challenger Report.) 



Family II. CiEi.nroKMin.n. Colony not fixed, having a large axial 

 cavity with a terminal aperture. liranehial apci'lines Ihv-hibrd. 

 'I'll is includes one S]ieeies, Cii'hmii'inii:: l:ii.: -I, i/i (Jli-nlni.in i, which 13 a 

 transition form between the ordinary < ''impound AscMians (c.y., 

 Jiix/n>nii/a'} and the Asi'iili:>: ,W;./M/'i<'\ ( I'l/rnsuma). 



Family III. DiOBMNIDA Colony usually thin and incrusting 

 Test containing .stel- 

 late calcareous spi- 

 cules. Tcstis single, 

 large ; vas deferens 

 spirally coiled. The 

 chief genera are /'/- 

 dtmnum (Savigny), 

 in which the colony 

 is thick and fleshy 

 and there are only FIG. 19. Colonies of Ax'ulitc Composite (natural size). 



A. Colclla q-ttoyi. B. Leptodimtm itF'jlcctuvi. C. I'lta- 

 ryngodictyon mircibilc. D. Botrj/tlvs, showing ar- 

 rangement of ascidiozooids in circular systems each 

 of which has a central common cloaca. (Alter HLi-d- 

 man, Challenger Report.) 



three rows of stig- 



mata on each side of 



the branchial sac ; 



and Leptodinum 



(Milne-Edwards), in 



which the colony is thin and incrusting (fig. 19, B) and there are 



four rows of stigmata on each side of the branchial sac. 



Family IV. BIPLOSOMID.E. Test reduced in amount, rarely con 

 taining spicules. Vas deferens not spirally coiled. In iiiplosoma 

 (Macdonald), the most important genus, the larva is gemmiparous. 



Family V. POLYCLINID.E. Ascidiozooids divided into three 

 regions, thorax, abdomen, and post-abdomen. Testes numerous ; 

 vas deferens not spirally coiled. The chief genera are Phari/ngo- 

 dictyon (Herdman), with stigmata absent or modified, containing 

 one species, Ph. mirabile (fig. 19, C), the only Compound Ascidian 

 known from a depth of 1000 fathoms ; Poh/dinum (Savigny), with 

 a smooth-walled stomach; AjiUdiuin (Savigny), with the stomach 

 wall longitudinally folded ; and Aiiinrvin'iinii (Milne-Edwards), in 

 which the ascidiozooid has a long post-abdomen and a large atrial 

 languet. 



Family VI. BOTRYLLID.E. Ascidiozooids having the intestine 

 and reproductive organs alongside the branchial sac. Dorsal lamina 

 present ; internal longitudinal bars present in branchial sac. The 

 chief genera are Botryllus (Gaertn. and Pall. ), with simple stellate 

 systems (fig. 19, D), and Botrylloides (Milne -Edwards), with 

 elongated or ramified systems. 



Family VII. POLYSTYELID.E. Ascidiozooids not grouped in 

 systems. Branchial and atrial apertures four-lobed. Branchial 

 sac may be folded ; internal longitudinal bars present. The chief 

 genera are ThijJaeium (Carus), with ascidiozooids projecting above 

 general surface of colony ; Goodsiria (Cun- 

 ningham), with ascidiozooids completely 

 imbedded in investing mass ; and Chorizo- 

 cormus (Herdman), with ascidiozooids 

 united in little groups which are connected 

 by stolons. The last genus contains one 

 species, Cli. rcliculattis, a transition form 

 between the other Poli/stydidx and tin- 

 StyfUnse amongst Simple Ascidiaus. 



The methods of reproduction by gemma- 

 tion differ in their details in the various 

 groups of Compound Ascidians ; but in all 

 cases the process is essentially a giving off 

 from the parent body of groups of cells re- 

 presenting the ectoderm, the mesnderm, 

 and the cndoderm, vjhich develop into the 

 corresponding layers of the bud. The first 

 ascidiozooid of the colony produced by the 

 tailed larva does not form sexual repro- 

 ductive organs, but reproduces by gemma- 

 tion so as to make a colony. Thus there 

 is alternation of generations in the life- 

 history. In the most completely formed 

 colonies (e.g. , BotryUus) the ascidiozooids 

 are arranged in groups (systems or cceno- 

 bii), and in each system are placed with 

 their atrial apertures towards one another, 

 and all communicating with a common 

 cloacal cavity wliieU opens to the exterior 

 in the centre of the system (fig. 19 D). 



Sub-order 3. Ascidiaa Salpifonnes. 



Free-swimming pelagic colonies having 

 the form of a hollow cylinder closed at one 



end. The ascidiozooids forming the colony FlG 2 0. rurosnma Otg<ua s 

 are imbedded in the common test in such a natural si, :< . -\. Si le'view 

 manner that the branchial apertures open of entire colony. B. End 

 on the outer surface and theatrial aperturea 

 on the inner surface next to the central 

 cavity of the colony. The ascidiozooids arc produced by gemmation 

 from "a rudimentary larva (the cyathozooid) developed sexually. 



2B 



Eepro- 

 ductiou 

 by gem- 

 niation 





"*, <- ! 



Ascidise 



Salpi- 



/ ormet - 



. . 

 extremlt >'' 



