Chromodoris striatella
Bergh, 1876

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: DORIDINA
Family: Chromodorididae

DISTRIBUTION

Tropical Indo-West Pacific.

PHOTO

Mandorah Jetty, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia,  on wharf pile on 'darwinellid sponge', 6 m. 45, 58, 58 mm long alive. 26 June 1987. AM C153612  Upper - on food sponge. Lower -  two adults showing colour variation. Photos: Bill Rudman.

Grows to about 30mm long. It can be best described as being white with thin black lines as distinct from Chromodoris lineolata which is black with white lines. The difference is particularly clear in paler specimens in which the background colour is clearly a translucent white or straw colour. Unlike C. lineolata, this species has a white line along the inner edge of the orange border, rather then black.

See separate page for messages concerning what I consider to be a spotted form of C. striatella. It is probable that the recently described Chromodoris mandapamensis is a dark example of this same colour form.

• Rudman, W.B. (1982) The Chromodorididae (Opisthobranchia: Mollusca) of the Indo-West Pacific: Chromodoris quadricolor, C. lineolata and Hypselodoris nigrolineata colour groups. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 76: 183-241.
• Rudman, W.B., Darvell, B.W. (1990) Opisthobranch Molluscs of Hong Kong: Part 1. Nudibranch Families; Goniodorididae, Onchidorididae, Triophidae, Gymnodorididae, Chromodorididae (Nudibranchia). Asian Marine Biology, 7: 31-79.

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