Flabellina marcusorum

Flabellina marcusorum
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
(unranked): clade Heterobranchia

clade Euthyneura
clade Nudipleura
clade Nudibranchia
clade Dexiarchia
clade Cladobranchia
clade Aeolidida

Superfamily: Flabellinoidea
Family: Flabellinidae
Genus: Flabellina
Species: F. marcusorum
Binomial name
Flabellina marcusorum
Gosliner & Kuzirian, 1990[1]
Synonyms
  • Coryphellina rubrolineata auct. non O'Donoghue, 1929
  • Flabellina marcusorum Gosliner & Kuzirian, 1990

Flabellina marcusorum, (Spanish common name: Eolidáceo de Marcus)[2] is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.[3]

Distribution

This species was described from Isla San Diego, Baja California, Mexico. Flabellina marcusorum is thought to occur in two disjunct populations in the waters of central and south America: one group on the west coast of central America in the eastern Pacific Ocean[4] and as far east as the Galapagos Islands[2] and the other on the east side of the continent in the Caribbean Sea and in the western Atlantic Ocean down to Brazil.[5]

Description

Flabellina marcusorum grows to a maximum length of 25 - 30 mm and has a mainly translucent pink or orange body colour.[4] The elongate rhinophores, foot corners and cerata are tipped with opaque white (or sometimes opaque yellow), with a broad, purple band beneath. The posterior face of the rhinophores may have up to one hundred papillae.[5] The oral tentacles are elongate and thin, and are longer than the rhinophores.[4]

This species is very similar in colouration to the recently described African species Flabellina arveloi.[5] A comparison with other Flabellina species from Mexico is given in the description of Flabellina fogata.[4]

Species Rhinophores Ground colour Colour of cerata Living size (mm)
F. marcusorum Red, papillate posteriorly Bright pink Pink, purple and yellow < 20
F. telja Yellow or brown, perfoliate Light pink, white spots Brownish pink < 24
F. vansyoci Pink, verrucose Rose pink Rose pink, white spots < 15
F. bertschi White, smooth White Reddish pink, white tips < 8
F. fogata Translucent orange, annulate Translucent orange Red with white spots < 15
F. cynara White with purple tips, perfoliate Pink with purple markings Salmon & purple, white spots < 12

Habitat

This species is found in shallow waters in the subtidal and intertidal zones at depths of less than 200 metres.[2]

References

  1. Gosliner, T. M. & A. M. Kuzirian. 1990. Two new species of Flabellinidae (Opisthobranchia: Aeolidacea) from Baja California. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, 47: 1-15.
  2. 1 2 3 "CDF Galapagos Species Checklists - Flabellina marcusorum". Checklists.datazone.darwinfoundation.org. Retrieved 2012-07-05.
  3. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Flabellina marcusorum Gosliner & Kuzirian, 1990". Marinespecies.org. Retrieved 2012-06-04.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Millen S. & Hermosillo A. (2007) The genus Flabellina Voight, 1834 (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia) from Bahia de Banderas (Pacific coast of Mexico) with ecological observations, the description of a new species, and the redescription of Flabellina cynara. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences ser.4, 58(26): 543-559. page(s): 556
  5. 1 2 3 Rudman, W.B. (September 13, 2000). "Flabellina marcusorum Gosliner & Kuzirian, 1990.". Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
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