More on the identity of Chromodoris neona
August 19, 2009
From: Bill Rudman
Concerning message #22560:
To accompany Linda's messages on just what is Chromodoris neona, here are two drawings from Marcus's original description.
In his description Marcus describes the background colour as 'bright light blue' and
"Rhinophores, gills, and the pointed tip of the foot are red violet. The back of the notum is trimmed with bright eosin red border ...... lines and spots of the same colour form an irregular pattern on the notum (black in Fig 90 and 98). ............ A stripe in the midline of the prominent hind end of the foot is also bright red. There are about siz darker blue areas on each side of the notum. These are due to dense accumulations of gland cells ..."
The animal identified as C. neona in the Caribbean Sea Slugs book is not what Marcus described as C. neona. Marcus specifically described the gills and rhinophores as red-violet. I feel that Guido Villani's photo on the species' Fact Sheet fits Marcus's description almost perfectly. Marcus would have described the gills and rhinophores as white with purple tips and added black tips in his drawings if it was the species in Linda's photos [message #22560 ] and the Caribbean Sea Slugs book. The only tip Marcus mentions is the posterior tip of the foot which he describes as red violet - which again fits Guido Villani's photo. Another difference are the large mantle glands described by Marcus on each side of the mantle. In Guido's photo they are present as white rather than deep blue spots, but they are clearly the same anatomical feature. No sign of similar glands can be seen in Linda's photos or those in Caribbean Sea Slugs
I would consider the animal identified as C. neona in Caribbean Sea Slugs to be an unnamed species. I can't find any described species with this combination of white gills and rhinophores with purple tips. I am calling it Chromodoris sp. 17.
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Marcus, Er. (1955) Opisthobranchia from Brazil. Boletim da Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciencias e Letras. Universidade de Sao Paulo, Zoologia, 20: 89-261. (Pls. 1-30)
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
