Phyllodesmium magnum pair from the Red Sea

October 13, 2005
From: Binyamin Koretz


Dear Bill,
We found this Phyllodesmium magnum pair in the same spot where a week earlier we'd encountered a single individual. Perhaps he's the larger of the current pair but there's no way to be sure.

I thought this might be a prelude to mating, but we couldn't stay for more than a few minutes to watch (depth was 42 m).

Locality: Eilat, Divers' Village, Israel. Red Sea (Gulf of Eilat). Depth: 42 m. Length: 10 cm. 26 August 2005. mixed corals. Photo: Binyamin & Shulamit Koretz

Regards
Binyamin

binyamin@koretz.net

Koretz, B., 2005 (Oct 13) Phyllodesmium magnum pair from the Red Sea. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/14655

Dear Binyamin,
They are certainly spectacular looking aeolids. It's good to see the purplish body and foot with the white edge so clearly, as it was a feature very obvious in the animals I described from New Caledonia. I guess they stay in one spot if their food is nearby and plentiful. I agree that their 'closeness' suggests a prelude to mating, but I must say that is the norm amongst nudibranchs.  I guess its an evolutionary imperative to mate whenever possible, when meeting a partner is in many ways a matter of luck.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2005 (Oct 13). Comment on Phyllodesmium magnum pair from the Red Sea by Binyamin Koretz. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/14655

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