Another record of Polycera chilluna from South Carolina

Dear Brian,

We know almost nothing about the nudibranchs of South Carolina so most animals you find there are going to be interesting. Although your animals are blue and have yellow markings, they are not Hypselodoris picta, but they are something which is also very interesting. It is Polycera chilluna which I identified from earlier photos from South Carolina in 2003. Before that it had not been reported since it was named in 1961. Even more interesting is that it is almost certainly the same as Polycera aurantiomarginata, a species which was later named from the other side of the Atlantic.

Your photos certainly confirm its white egg ribbon, similar to quite a number of species of Polycera, and that it feeds on a plant-like bryozoan colony. In your photos, the dominant organism is the small yellow ascidians. I am not sure what purple background is, but I don't think it has anything to do with the ascidians. Whatever they are, species of Polycera do not feed on ascidians but they do feed on plant-like bryozoans like the brown branching colonies in all your photos.

Although I am still waiting for some good photos of the food and eggs of H. picta don't feel bad. It's good to get a some more information on the long-lost P. chilluna.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman