Splanchnotrophus brevipes from The Netherlands

August 15, 2007
From: Marco Faasse

The endoparasitic copepod Splanchnotrophus brevipes lives in seaslugs, with the sausage-shaped egg sacs of the females protruding from the body of the slug. We found this copepod in The Netherlands, where it has never been recorded before. The host slug in this report, Aeolidiella glauca, is an unrecorded host, as far as I know. Later this year S. brevipes was recorded from The Netherlands in another new host, Cuthona concinna [as Trinchesia concinna]. In literature the colour of the eggs is described as white or yellowish. Those observed by us were rose-coloured. Elsewhere on this website I found the similar copepod Ismaila.

Locality: Koepeltje, Grevelingen, 6m, The Netherlands, NorthSea, NE Atlantic, 07 April 2007, muddy slope. Length: appr. 5 mm. Photographer: Marco Faasse.

  • Faasse, M. A. & Lighart, M. 2007. Een parasitair roeipootkreeftje in een naaktslak in de Grevelingen: Splanchnotrophus brevipes Hancock & Norman, 1863. - Het Zeepaard 67(3): 82-84.

Marco Faasse

mafaasse@hetnet.nl

Faasse, M.A., 2007 (Aug 15) Splanchnotrophus brevipes from The Netherlands. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20171

Dear Marco,

If you look on the Parasites page there is at present only a short list, but one of those includes a record of Aeolidiella alderi with the same purple egg masses. If Splanchnotrophus brevipes hasn't been recorded to have purple egg masses how do you know this one is that species? Did you extract the copepod for a look? Is it possible it is another species?

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2007 (Aug 15). Comment on Splanchnotrophus brevipes from The Netherlands by Marco Faasse. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20171

Factsheet

Opisthobranch parasites

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