Anyone tried to grow Sea Squirts ???

I was curious is anyone has tried to raise these very interesting guys, such as successes in feeding, and general care. I'm aware to of there ability to reproduce with ease if iodine levels are maintained, but do they become a uncontrollable pest ??? Also a trusted merchant that one would buy from???Any thoughts????: :

 

all that i have seen have died unless they have been fed specifically. my boss got them one time and swore them off. and from what i have read, there are some that you get from live rock and they survive. but most according to my book die off within 6 months.

 

LOL, i have one about 2 inches long, feeds off the filter, its doing great!!! It hasnt reproduced, but it has grown.

 

well there you go. lol. i think i have some but it may be the craziest sponge ever...

 

The three main components of keeping a Tunicates/ Sea Squirts aside from getting it into your tank as they don't handle shipping well, are feeding, water flow and light!!!! they are filter feeders thus feed on disolved organics and bacteria. The plankton in liquid foods that are on the market are to large for squirts and Tunicates.
Good water flow is necessary to bring food and rid waste from them. Most are aposymbiotic, meaning they don't have zooxanthellae and therefore require shade or indirect light.
Those that are symbiotic require moderate to strong illumination though they must be acclimated very slowly as most corals etc. should!
Very fascinating and good luck with them. Are you sure they are Squirts, becuase sponges are very similar to them.

 

where did you come across it and what is your lighting set up???

 

i disagree with coral reefer. If you read around on tunicates and sea squirts you will discover that they normally reside in bethnic zones (very low light). Many times you will find them growing like crazy in your sump. That said they do need strong current because they are filter feeders. I have litterally about 50 of them in my overflow box and sump. I got rid of them all once as they were clogging my return pump. It took them only a few months to repopulate.
After i removed them the first time i realized how beneficial they are.

 

I don't know what you disagree with about my post k9BOLX? I said that most of them require low light!!!! Plus they are filter feeders!

 

I got mine from a lfs. It looked like a small rock and had a couple of zoos on one side, i saw the squirt and told the lfs i whanted the zoo rock, they didnt know there was a squirt on there. Im pretty sure its a squirt, please correct me if im wrong, it has two mouths that open and close on oposite sides. It doesnt have many color, basically light and dark brown.

 

I agree with you on the light issue to some level, due to the fact that I am still learning about these guys. From what I have read that sounds right about there reproduction habits.

This is a website that lays out the basic 101 of sea squirts:

Microscopy-UK Micscape Microscopy and Microscopes Magazine