Phidiana bourailli
(Risbec, 1928)

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: AEOLIDINA
Family: Glaucidae

DISTRIBUTION

Indo West-Pacific

PHOTO

North Reef (sewer pipe), entrance to harbour, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Jan. 1978. 15mm long alive. 4 animals on hydroids Salacia tetracythara and Thyroscyphus fruticosus sensu Millard, 1975. Photo: Bill Rudman. Drawing showing ceratal arrangement [from Rudman, 1980, Fig 3b].

Body shape typical for genus, elongate and farly high, with a prominent pericardial hump. Anterior edge of the foot is extended pointed foot corners. The rhinophores are chracteristic for the species with evenly spaced rings or 'brackets' which each have a notch in the posterior midline. There can be up to 5 brackets in larger specimens. The cerata are short and arranged in orderly clusters, or groups, of rows. The body is translucent white with opaque white speckling and patches on the head and dorsum. On the head there are also orange streaks and spots, in some cases forming a pair of broken orange lines from the front of the head to the base of the rhinophores. Similar ornage marks appear on the dorsum between the cerata and on the sides of the body. The ceratal wall is translucent clear with some white speckling and black patches and spots mainly concentrated in the lower half. The digestive gland duct and contents is usually a light brown colour.

It has similarities to Phidiana anulifera, P. semidecora.

References:
• Rudman, W.B. (1980) Aeolid opisthobranch molluscs (Glaucidae) from the Indian Ocean and the south-west Pacific. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 68: 139-172.

Authorship details
Rudman, W.B., 2002 (September 5) Phidiana bourailli (Risbec, 1928). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet/phidbour

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