Volvatella viridis from Queensland
July 7, 2002
From: Bill Rudman
To accompany Shouichi Kato's message about Volvatella viridis from Japan, here is a photo of a similar animal from Heron Island, at the southern end of the Greata Barrier Reef Queensland. While other species of Volvatella were found on the common Caulerpa racemosa this was the only one I found on this quite differently shaped species of Caulerpa.
Data: Heron Is, Queensland, Australia, on Caulerpa sp., June 1983. AM C138571. PHOTOS: Bill Rudman.
As I discuss elsewhere, the green mantle, which makes the transparent shell look green, and the white animal are characteristic of both V. viridis and the more recently described V. ventricosa. I have tentatively decided to identify this as Volvatella viridis, but we need a re-examination of the anatomy of that species to determine if it does differ from V. ventricosa. If there are two species, this record represents an increase in the know range of V. viridis from Japan to the south Pacific, or of V. ventricosa from the eastern Indian Ocean to the south west Pacific.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
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