Aegires villosus
Farran, 1905

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: DORIDINA
Superfamily: ANADORIDOIDEA
Family: Aegiretidae

DISTRIBUTION

Widespread Indo-West Pacific species.

PHOTO

UPPER: Edithburgh Jetty, 3m, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, February 1985. 15mm long alive, AM C145183.
LOWER: Juvenile, 3mm long alive. Lagoon between mainland and Récif de l'Infernet, off Koumac, New Caledonia, 20°34.4'S, 164°13'E, 12m, silty bottom with dense gorgonian beds, 4 October 1993. PHOTOS: Bill Rudman.

The species of the genus Aegires are all small, and feed on calcareous sponges. The purple tipped papillae make this species easily recognisable. Note however from the photos, that in juveniles the papillae are proportionally much longer than in adults.

Reference:
• Farran, G.P. (1905). Report on the opisthobranchiate Mollusca collected by Professor Herdman, at Ceylon, in 1902. In: Report to the Government of Ceylon on the Pearl Oyster fisheries of the Gulf Of Manaar. Suppl. Rep. No. 21: 329-364, Pls. 1-6.

Authorship details
Rudman, W.B., 2000 (January 19) Aegires villosus Farran, 1905. [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet/aegivill

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