Plankton?

Hi All,

I found this unusual organism in the plankton 2 weeks ago, in Okinawa, Japan. Diameter ~ 1cm. I found this during a night dive, ~ 6 m deep, above a sandy area in ~ 12 m. Is this a type of invertebrate larva? It definitely does not look like any cnidarian to me, since there are no tentacles, and neither does it appear to be a salp. What is this? Thanks!

Best,

Klaus

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pacificklaus/...in/photostream/

Hi Klaus - I'm stumped on this one. Do you have any other shots of it? Did it have one opening or two?

The only thing it reminds me of is a semi-transparent tunicate that might have gotten swept off its rock. Take a look at some of the tunicates on Sealord's page - http://www.sealordphotography.net/Nature/G...101704897_TuHRV

Hi Klaus - I'm stumped on this one. Do you have any other shots of it? Did it have one opening or two?

 

The only thing it reminds me of is a semi-transparent tunicate that might have gotten swept off its rock. Take a look at some of the tunicates on Sealord's page - http://www.sealordphotography.net/Nature/G...101704897_TuHRV

Thank you for your reply! Unfortunately, this is the only quality shot I have of this critter. The surface texture is indeed very similar of these tunicates. I didn't see any orifices, but it could have closed them down when it go detached?