Okenia rosacea or Hopkins Rose

Dear Mike,
Thanks for the photo. I do have this species on the Forum but under its resent name Okenia rosacea. It's a problem when names change whether to leave the old name [in this case Hopkinsia rosacea] in the Species List or not. I decided to remove them, otherwise no one would know which was the correct name. However if you are looking for a name you can't find in the list, use the Forum Search facility and it should find it. I also leave some old Fact Sheets 'in the background' so if you have an old link you will be redirected to the new name. Common names are more of a problem. The Forum Search found 'Hopkins Rose' but I don't as a rule include common names which are often forced on authors by  editors and publishers. I've always thought Hopkins Rose is a good example of why not to use common names. This nudibranch looks nothing like a rose, and the 'rosacea' is from Latin for 'rose' as in pink or reddish, not as in a flower. In scientific names the first word is the noun and the second is the adjective. So the common name if based on the scientific name should be the 'rosy Hopkinsia' or 'pink Hopkinsia'. 'Hopkins Rose' misses the point entirely. 

However, I shouldn't get carried away fuming about 'common names'.  There is no reason to apologise for the photo quality. Your photo is good in showing the reddish bryozoan on which Okenia rosacea feeds, and obtains its rosy colour.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman