Aphelodoris? from sthn New Zealand

July 13, 2002
From: Ian Skipworth


Hi Bill
Having recently completed a dive trip to Fiordland in south west of our South Island, I found quite a few of these nudibranchs. I was hoping that this would be a new nudibranch for me but suspect that it may simply be a colour variation of Aphelodoris luctuosa which is certainly very common in the north east of New Zealand.

I saw these nudis on many dives in shallowish water (7 to 20 metres). All were this colour - none had any brown in them. Your comments on its identification would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Ian

ian@ianskipworth.com

Skipworth, I., 2002 (Jul 13) Aphelodoris? from sthn New Zealand. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/7490

Dear Ian,
It certainly looks like an Aphelodoris with the raised sheath around the rhinophore stalk and the bushy gills. It looks like your earlier photos from nthn New Zealand with the brown removed. Richard Willan (In Willan & Coleman, 1984 - Nudibranchs of Australasia) mentions a colour form of A. luctuosa which is found at Stewart Island [sthn tip of South Island for those unfamiliar with NZ geography] which is 'dirty cream with a faint yellowish margin'.

Until this group is studied in more detail I think it is best to consider this to be a colour form of A. luctuosa. A. luctuosa is considered to occur all around New Zealand. It would certainly be useful to know just how its 'colour forms' are distributed around the country. I suspect there is not a lot of anatomical difference between species of this genus so in the end we will probably need to have information about the distribution of colour forms, what they eat, what their egg masss look like and how their eggs and larvae develop.
Cheers,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2002 (Jul 13). Comment on Aphelodoris? from sthn New Zealand by Ian Skipworth. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/7490

Factsheet

Aphelodoris luctuosa

Related messages

  1. Aphelodoris from New Zealand
    From: Nova Mieszkowska, January 12, 2010
  2. Re: Aphelodoris? from sthn New Zealand
    From: Amy Moran, December 15, 2009
  3. Re: Aphelodoris? from sthn New Zealand
    From: Sharon Grant, February 6, 2008
  4. Aphelodoris luctuosa? from nthn New Zealand
    From: Alan Morrison, February 17, 2005
  5. Re: Aphelodoris luctuosa from New Zealand
    From: Mark Burnett, March 25, 2003
  6. Re: Aphelodoris luctuosa from New Zealand
    From: Phil Cromwell, March 21, 2003
  7. Aphelodoris luctuosa from New Zealand
    From: Mark Burnett, March 19, 2003
  8. Mystery dorid from Leigh, New Zealand
    From: Ian Paterson, October 9, 2001
  9. Aphelodoris luctuosa from New Zealand
    From: Ian Skipworth, May 13, 2001
  10. Aphelodoris from New Zealand
    From: Erwin Koehler, January 19, 2000

Show factsheet and all related messages