Development of Herdmania has been described by Sebastian (1953) and Das (1957). Development is indirect involving a free swimming tadpole larva. Herdmania (a tunicate) is the most appropriate one of the best examples of retrogressive metamorphosis in which the highly developed tadpole larva undergoes retrogressive changes to become the most degenerated and sedentary adult. The phenomenon of retrogressive metamorphosis is [...]
The body of Herdmania can be roughly divided into two parts- the body proper which projects into the sea water and the foot which lies imbedded in the sea-bottom. All the soft parts of the animal lie in the body proper. The foot is entirely composed of the test. If the test is removed from the left side of the [...]
The circulatory system of Herdmania includes heart and pericardium, blood vessels and blood. Blood: The blood is slightly reddish vacuole and transparent. It has colourless plasma, many pigmented and non-pigmented corpuscles, and a few colourless amoeboid leucocytes. Leucocytes are nucleated, amoeboid and colourless. Other corpuscles are round, of various sizes, some have vacuoles, and they may or may not be [...]