Mastodawn

#Tunicates are the closest living relatives of vertebrates. Yasunori Sasakura explores a @PLOSBiology study that reveals the unique embryogenesis of Thaliacea (2 spp of #salps), tunicates that regained mobility from their sessile ancestor. Paper: https://plos.io/4bscc6j Primer: https://plos.io/4uBoK4f

Comparative embryogenesis of two salp species reveals rogue development and evolutionary divergence from sessile tunicates

Although tunicates include both sessile ascidians and planktonic salps, the embryogenesis of salps differs in the presence of unique maternal cells called calymmocytes. This study analyses embryogenesis in Salpa fusiformis and Thalia democratica, identifying distinct cleavage patterns and blastomere positioning, among other characteristics, and providing a framework to study their evolution.

cassandroid אַנטיפֿאַ Jun 28, 2024

The #tunicates here around Mabul, Borneo would like to share their assessment of the current state of democracy in the United States.

Lukas VFN 🇪🇺May 17, 2024

#Jellyfish may dominate the future Arctic Ocean https://www.awi.de/en/about-us/service/press/single-view/quallen-koennten-kuenftig-den-arktischen-ozean-dominieren.html

Pan-#Arctic distribution modeling reveals #ClimateChange driven poleward shifts of major gelatinous #zooplankton species https://aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/lno.12568

"jellyfish and other gelatinous zooplankton could be some of the few organism groups to benefit from #climate change... the transparent #cnidarians, #ctenophores and pelagic #tunicates thrive on rising water temperatures, nutrient contamination and #overfishing."

Single view - AWI

Benjamin Carr, Ph.D. 👨🏻‍💻🧬Jul 30, 2023

Bizarre ancient #sea creature brings evolution mystery to the surface
A new #tunicate #fossil, a close relative of vertebrates, is half a billion years old. There is now strong evidence that #tunicates are the closest relatives to #vertebrates, but a mystery still surrounds them. How did they evolve, and what did they evolve from? A 500 million-year-old fossil is now telling us more about the #evolution of these peculiar life forms. https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/07/bizarre-ancient-sea-creature-brings-evolution-mystery-to-the-surface/

Bizarre ancient sea creature brings evolution mystery to the surface

A new tunicate fossil, a close relative of vertebrates, is half a billion years old.

Ars Technica

michael Jul 6, 2023

6-JUL-2023
Discovery of 500-million-year-old fossil reveals astonishing secrets of tunicate origins
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/994062

#science #evolution #fossils #tunicates

Discovery of 500-million-year-old fossil reveals astonishing secrets of tunicate origins

In a new study in Nature Communications Harvard researchers describe a 500 million-year-old tunicate fossil species. The study suggests that the modern tunicate body plan was already established soon after the Cambrian Explosion.

EurekAlert!

Lukas VFN 🇪🇺Jul 6, 2023

Discovery of 500-million-year-old #fossil reveals astonishing secrets of tunicate origins https://phys.org/news/2023-07-discovery-million-year-old-fossil-reveals-astonishing.html

A mid-#Cambrian #tunicate and the deep origin of the #ascidiacean body plan https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-39012-4

"Ancestral #tunicates lived as stationary, filter-feeding adults and likely underwent #metamorphosis from a tadpole-like larva."

Discovery of 500-million-year-old fossil reveals astonishing secrets of tunicate origins

Karma Nanglu says his favorite animal is whichever one he's working on. But his latest subject may hold first place status for a while: a 500-million-year-old fossil from the wonderfully weird group of marine invertebrates, the tunicates.

Phys.org

KaylinQ Jan 20, 2023

"Jet-propelled #tunicates pump #carbon through the #oceans"

https://phys.org/news/2023-01-jet-propelled-tunicates-carbon-oceans.html#!

Jet-propelled tunicates pump carbon through the oceans

Salps are transparent, tube-shaped jellies well known for their propulsive jetting movements. According to new research, they also take quite a bit of carbon along for the ride.

Phys.org

Lukas VFN 🇪🇺Jan 19, 2023

Jet-Propelled #Tunicates Pump #Carbon Through the Oceans https://eos.org/research-spotlights/jet-propelled-tunicates-pump-carbon-through-the-oceans

Populations of these gelatinous #zooplankton are episodic, patchy. Sometimes they bloom and form huge aggregations. Their feces, daily migrations, and sinking carcasses sequester carbon into the #DeepSea. This is especially prominent in retentive or low-export #FoodWebs.

The Outsized Role of #Salps in Carbon Export in the #Subarctic Northeast #PacificOcean: Deborah Steinberg et al. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2022GB007523

Jet-Propelled Tunicates Pump Carbon Through the Oceans

New research reveals that blooms of the widespread gelatinous zooplankton—along with their feces, daily vertical migrations, and carcasses—increase marine carbon export.

Eos