Re: Asteronotus from Solomon Ids
September 18, 2001
From: Bernard Picton
Hi Bill,
I saw an animal very like the one in Bruce Potter's message in Bali in 1996 at night. It was large, but about the same size as a typically coloured Asteronotus cespitosus, indeed I photographed a typical animal on the same dive [UPPER RIGHT]. I assumed, on the basis of the difference in pigmentation and height of the tubercles and ridges that the dark red animal was a separate species.
The dark red animal was pigmented like some species of Pleurobranchus which are also only seen out at night, the colour seems to absorb flashlight and is difficult to expose correctly, appearing almost black in the photographs [LOWER RIGHT]. It had a small shrimp associated with it [LOWER LEFT].
All FROM: Pemuteran, Bali, Indonesia. April 1996, 8-15m depth at night.
Bernard
bernard.picton.um@nics.gov.uk
Picton, B.E., 2001 (Sep 18) Re: Asteronotus from Solomon Ids. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/5286
Thanks Bernard,
It could be a distinct species. It definitely needs someone to compare the anatomy of the dark 'form' and the more typical colour form.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
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