Philine orca
Gosliner, 1988
Order: CEPHALASPIDEA
Family: Philinidae
DISTRIBUTION
Widespread Indo-West Pacific species
PHOTO
southern Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, February 1985. 3mm long alive. PHOTO: Bill Rudman.
This is one of the smallest species of Philine, and one of the few which is not a translucent white colour. The resemblance of its characteristic colour pattern of black patches on a white background, to the colours of the killer whale Orca, are the reason for its scientific name.
Reference:
• Gosliner, T.M., (1988). The Philinacea (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia) of Aldabra Atoll, with descriptions of five new species and a new genus. Bulletin of the Biological Society of Washington, 8: 79-100, Figs 1-14.
Rudman, W.B., 1998 (December 18) Philine orca Gosliner, 1988. [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet/philorca
