Corambe pacifica from Carmel, California
November 10, 2007
From: Clinton Bauder
Hi Bill,
Here is another cryptic kelp-dweller for you. I'm pretty certain these animals are Corambe pacifica. I found the egg ribbons first and the fact that they are quite different (being spirals rather than half-moons) from C. steinbergae is what alerted me to these slugs being a different species. As with C. steinbergae it took a bit to find them even after I'd found the eggs as they are nearly invisible on their byrozoan prey. Looking at the pictures you can see the posterior notch and the gill plume which I think make them C. pacifica though in my examples these features are more subtle than the picture in the Behrens and Hermosillo book.
Locality: Point Lobos, 15 meters, California, USA, Pacific, 13 October 2007, Macrocystis Kelp Blade. Length: 5-10 mm. Photographer: Clinton Bauder.
Clinton Bauder
gecko1@apple.com
Bauder, C., 2007 (Nov 10) Corambe pacifica from Carmel, California. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20958
Hi Clinton,
Good show. Yes, they are almost invisible, from above. I love your oblique photo (right), as it shows the height of the specimens. This is exactly how I tell Branchers to look for these guys.
Thanks for sharing,
Dave Behrens
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