Chordata

Morphology:  Purple and "liver-like."  Softer and "slimier" than sea pork (Aplidium stellatum).  Contains 3 rows of microscopic gill slits.Distribution:  West central Atlantic, Gulf of MexicoHabitat:  Colonies can be extensive - covering entire undersides of docks or other submerged surfacesLife History:  Colonial tunicateReference:  Ruppert, EE, and Fox, RS.  1988.  Seashore Animals of the Southeast.  University of South Carolina Press, Columbia, SC, pp. 61-62.Picture:  http://sunsetbeachandbirdislandnc.com/Miscellaneous_Marine_Life/marinelife.htmMolgula manhattensis - Common Sea Grape

Morphology: Gray to greenish ascidian; tunic is usually muddy; siphons prominent but not far apart. Reaches 34 mm.

Distribution:  Found from Maine to Texas, but absent in Southern Florida in the United States, also found in the Arctic Ocean and Atlantic Europe. It is an invasive species on the eastern United States coast.

Habitat: Found on rocks and pilings in bays and estuaries, being very tolerant to a wide range of salinities, temperatures and pollution levels near shore.

Life History: Plankton feeder that is hermaphroditic and sheds eggs into the water.

Reference: USGS