Bornella anguilla swimming

November 29, 2006
From: Michael Henke

Dear Bill,

I am not sure, that this nudi is a Bornella stellifer. Can you confirm or correct me please.

Locality: P. Talise, 10 m, Nord Sulawesi, Indo Pacific, 2 November 2006, drop off, coral wall. Length: 12 cm. Photographer: Michael Henke.

I found it on two night dives at the 2 and 6 of November 2006 near P. Talise (Nord Sulawesi) in about 10 m depth (wall dive). The crazy thing was that this nudi can swim like a snake so that we call it nudi-fish, but I don't think that's the right name. The speed was really incredible, aboot 0,8 m per second in horizontally direction. Do you know if other nudis can swim like this?

PS Great website, it help me to identify most of my nudi-pictures!

Thanks,
Michael

henke@seddoc.de

Henke, M., 2006 (Nov 29) Bornella anguilla swimming. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/18621

Dear Mike,

It's definitely a species of Bornella, but not B. stellifer. This species is reknowned for the swimming ability you witnessed. In fact it got its name, Bornella anguilla, from its ability to swim like an eel [anguilla = eel]. Other species of Bornella swim by lateral flexion of their whole body, flexing their body one way, and then the other, causing them to swim sidweways through the water. In B. anguilla on the other hand the whole body forms a wave, like in an eel or snake, which allows it to swim head first through the water. As your photo shows, the cerata, gills and rhinophores all fold in to streamline the body.  

Concerning information on swimming in other sea slugs. I have a poor excuse for a  Fact Sheet on swimming, but if you follow my suggestion there and do a search on the Forum for swimming you'll find quite a few examples.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2006 (Nov 29). Comment on Bornella anguilla swimming by Michael Henke. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/18621

Factsheet

Bornella anguilla

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