A highly-variable compound ascidian, Distaplia viridis is common on rocky reef and jetty pylons. It can be found in a variety of colours, from brown and white, to purple and others. As with other Distaplia species, it has circular zooid systems, with relatively large branchial apertures around a distinctly-extruded central cloacal aperture. Its pattern can be similar to Eudistoma maculosum, but that species has a cluster of small central apertures rather than a large shared one. However, this species is much harder to distinguish from other Distaplia species, such as D. pallidus, which is usually an orange colour, but completely transparent, or D. florida, which has a particular colouration. Also worth noting is that this species looks very different when disturbed and its apertures closed.
