Cadlina willani
Miller, 1980

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: DORIDINA
Family: Chromodorididae

DISTRIBUTION

Throughout New Zealand to about 20m, but extremely rare intertidally.

PHOTO

Mercury Islands, New Zealand (NE of North Island) in about 6 m. This specimen is about 20 mm long. PHOTO: Ian Skipworth.

This is one of many chromodorids which are white with a yellow border. It is characterised by the yellow median line. Most of the known species of Cadlina are found in the northern hemisphere. C. willani is the only species known from New Zealand. Two species have been reported from southern Australia. One of these, Cadlina nigrobranchiata Rudman, 1985 from southwestern Australia, is also white with a yellow border but it had black gills and rhinophores. The second species, Cadlina tasmanica, from Tasmania is translucent white with scattered milky yellow spots over the mantle.

References:
• Miller, M.C. (1980). Cadlina willani, a new dorid nudibranch (Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia) from New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 7: 165-171.
• Rudman, W.B. (1985) The Chromodorididae (Opisthobranchia: Mollusca) of the Indo-West
Pacific: Chromodoris aureomarginata, C. verrieri and C. fidelis colour groups. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 83:241-299.
• Rudman, W.B. (1990) The Chromodorididae Opisthobranchia: Mollusca) of the Indo-West Pacific: further species of Glossodoris, Thorunna and the Chromodoris aureomarginata colour group. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 100(3):
263-326.

(Visit Skip's Underwater Image Gallery for further of Ian Skipworth's photos of New Zealand Underwater Life.)

Authorship details
Rudman, W.B., 1998 (January 20) Cadlina willani Miller, 1980. [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet/cadlwill

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