Noumea haliclona from Victoria, Australia

Dear Perry,

This is the chromodorid Noumea haliclona, which you will see from the Fact Sheet has distinct colour forms in different parts of southeastern Australia. It feeds on pink and yellow darwinellid sponges and is often found in clusters or aggregations. The most likely reason for this is that it has direct development, so instead of planktonic swimming veliger larvae hatching out of its egg ribbon, we found small crawling slugs. Since the eggs are usually deposited on the food sponge, or very near by,  the young hatch out on to their food and never move very far away. The name 'haliclona' is unfortunate. It was given to the species because its sponge food was misidentified as a species of Haliclona, a species of spiculate sponges which chromodorids don't eat.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman