Re: Update on Elysia crispata feeding

August 30, 2006
From: Andrew Rodenbeck

Concerning message #13716:

This thread has not been updated in a while, but it seems that there may still be confusion on eating habits of Elysia crispata.

My family now has third generation Elysia crispata in various home aquaria. I know they are at least third generation because the eggs of the original animal were transferred to a new tank. Eggs laid by Elysia crispata in the second tank where transferred to a third aquarium to hatch and grow.

I have observed the adults eat Bryopsis in large quantities. This seems to be the preferred food. But they also eat Chaetomorpha as well as Caulerpa racemosa, Caulerpa taxifolia, Caulerpa serrulata, and several other varieties of Caulerpa (I don't know the scientific names off-hand). Caulerpa is only eaten as a last resort if the preferred food is not found. Juvenile slugs however only ate Bryopsis or Chaetomorpha. They could be raised to maturity on either exclusively.

I am also surprised that the experiments did not carry through to multiple generations because my Elysia crispata were adult size two months after hatching if given access to either Bryopsis or Chaetomorpha and good lighting. The fastest growing slugs were kept in a vertical refugium full of Chaetomorpha with a 28 W compact fluorescent hanging on the side. They would voluntarily remain directly beside the light so that they were only a few cm from the bulb for weeks at a time while growing. Once they reached about 4 cm in length they began to move about much more actively.

Drew
Fort Wayne, Indiana

andrew.rodenbeck@gmail.com

Rodenbeck, A., 2006 (Aug 30) Re: Update on Elysia crispata feeding. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/17626

Dear Drew,
Thanks for the information. I am sure it will be of interest to those studying this fascinating animal. One thing that would be useful is if you could confirm the identity of your Elysia. Many of the animals previously identified as E. crispata have been shown to be a separate species which has been named Elysia clarki. Have a look at that Fact Sheet for links to a comparison between the species. Perhaps you have a photo you could send?

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2006 (Aug 30). Comment on Re: Update on Elysia crispata feeding by Andrew Rodenbeck. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/17626

Factsheet

Elysia crispata

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