Aplysia dactylomela from Montego Bay, Jamaica

November 13, 2009
From: Semra Halabi

Hi i wonder if anyone could help us.

We have just got back from our holiday in Jamaica, One lovely morning while taking my baby down on the beach we came across the 2 things thinking they were jelly fish. I scooped them up in my babies bucket so my baby wouldn't get stung (they looked dead ) so i threw them back into the sea 10 minutes later they were back again so i scooped them back up and took them to my husband to show him what we found so he could go deeper near to the corals to release them later, my husband told me when he released them they grew double there size and looked like they had wings.

Locality: Montego bay, on the beach, Jamaica, 22 october 2009, clear water. Length: 1 - 2 inches. Photographer: Semra Halabi

Could any one tells us what they are and were they dangerous.
Thanks
Semra

semrahalabi@hotmail.com

Halabi, S., 2009 (Nov 13) Aplysia dactylomela from Montego Bay, Jamaica. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22774

Dear Semra,

Your animal is a Sea Hare. Use the menu list on the top left of the page to have a look at the General Topics for a list of links to information on this group of sea slugs. You will see that Sea Hares ofte have wing-like flaps on the side of their bodies which in some species are used for swimming. Your species is Aplysia dactylomela, which has large black rings on its skin. These balck rings are particularly noticeable in Caribbean animals. 

Sea Hares do not sting or bite, and so are essentially harmless. There is one large species in Western Australia, A. gigantea, which sometimes washes up on beaches. We don't know why, but dogs who bite these washed up sea hares can sometimes be badly poisoned, apparently by something in the slug's skin. However I know of no other reports around the world of a Sea Hare being blamed for anything untoward.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2009 (Nov 13). Comment on Aplysia dactylomela from Montego Bay, Jamaica by Semra Halabi. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22774

Related messages

  1. Aplysia dactylomela from Canary Islands
    From: Claudia Stoll, March 3, 2010
  2. Aplysia dactylomela from sthn Queensland
    From: Gary Cobb, February 3, 2009
  3. Aplysia dactylomela? from South Africa
    From: Daleen Loest, October 27, 2008
  4. Re: Aplysia dactylomela from Canary Ids
    From: Obdulia Cabrera Hernández, October 21, 2008
  5. Aplysia dactylomela egg masses from the Mediterranean
    From: Antonello Greco, August 12, 2008
  6. Re: Aplysia dactylomela and its egg-mass
    From: Vinicius Padula, July 10, 2008
  7. Re: Aplysia dactylomela and its egg-mass
    From: Fabio Crocetta, July 10, 2008
  8. Re: Aplysia dactylomela and its egg-mass
    From: Fabio Crocetta, July 9, 2008
  9. Aplysia dactylomela from Rhodes, Greece
    From: Adam Gill, July 1, 2008
  10. Re: Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Islands
    From: Stanley Ramsell, March 6, 2008
  11. Re: Sea hare from the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
    From: Gary Cobb, October 10, 2007
  12. Sea hare from the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
    From: Aimee Richer, October 9, 2007
  13. Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Islands
    From: Mikkel Andersen, September 28, 2007
  14. Aplysia brasiliana in eastern Mediterranean?
    From: Gilbert Jaux, August 27, 2007
  15. Re: Feeding studies on Aplysia in Malaysia
    From: Corvin Eidens, July 20, 2007
  16. Aplysia dactylomela from Sabah, Malaysia
    From: Richard Swann, June 19, 2007
  17. Big sea hares on Mexican beach
    From: Benjamin Fisher, April 2, 2007
  18. Re: Feeding preference of Aplysia dactylomela
    From: Baki Yokes, November 27, 2006
  19. Re: Feeding preference of Aplysia dactylomela
    From: Philibert Bidgrain, November 20, 2006
  20. Aplysia dactylomela - eggs and larvae
    From: Jacob, Tim & Mai, November 6, 2006
  21. Aplysia dactylomela from Croatia
    From: Tom Turk, August 28, 2006
  22. Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Islands
    From: Christian Kowalewski, August 21, 2006
  23. Re: Aplysia dactylomela in Eastern Sicily
    From: Andrea Corso, August 18, 2006
  24. Aplysia dactylomela in Eastern Sicily
    From: Agatino Reitano, August 7, 2006
  25. Aplysia dactylomela in Sicily
    From: Antonello Greco, August 7, 2006
  26. Aplysia dactylomela in Crete, Greece
    From: Stig & Sus Andersson, August 4, 2006
  27. Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Islands
    From: Paul Harwood, June 15, 2006
  28. Aplysia dactylomela from Florida
    From: Rose Ann Maly, April 13, 2006
  29. Aplysia dactylomela from Greece
    From: Maria Salomidi, February 27, 2006
  30. Aplysia dactylomela from Cyprus
    From: Samantha Cooke, October 17, 2005
  31. Aplysia dactylomela - keeping in aquarium
    From: Jack Brown, September 16, 2005
  32. Aplysia dactylomela 'infant' from Bahamas
    From: Anne DuPont, August 27, 2005
  33. Another record of Aplysia dactylomela from Greece
    From: Allan David, August 11, 2005
  34. Re: Aplysia dactylomela in the Eastern Mediterranean
    From: Christopher Sweeting, August 1, 2005
  35. Aplysia dactylomela in the Eastern Mediterranean
    From: Baki Yokes, July 21, 2005
  36. Aplysia dactylomela from Greece
    From: Lucyna Sterniuk-Gronek, July 20, 2005
  37. Aplysia dactylomela from Florida
    From: Erik Sanders, May 7, 2005
  38. Sea Hares in Tenerife, Canary Ids
    From: Steve Andrews, April 15, 2005
  39. Aplysia dactylomela from St. Martin, West Indies
    From: Danny Dawson, March 18, 2005
  40. Sea Hares from Netherlands Antilles
    From: Bob Murphy , March 17, 2004
  41. Aplysia dactylomela from Canary Ids
    From: Tom + Jade, March 16, 2004
  42. Aplysia dactylomela and its egg-mass
    From: Marina Poddubetskaia, March 10, 2004
  43. Aplysia dactylomela from the Bahamas
    From: David Behr, March 1, 2004
  44. Aplysia dactylomela from Western Australia
    From: Monika Stambergova, February 11, 2004
  45. Feeding of Aplysia dactylomela
    From: Albert Diaz Garcia, January 26, 2004
  46. Aplysia dactylomela from Dominica
    From: Valérie Grando, January 6, 2004
  47. Aplysia dactylomela(?) from Brazil
    From: Vinicius Anderson, November 18, 2003
  48. Aplysia dactylomela from Jamaica
    From: Ross W. Gundersen, October 6, 2003
  49. Re: Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Ids
    From: Ron Warne, July 2, 2003
  50. Aplysia dactylomela from Senegal
    From: Marina Poddubetskaia, June 24, 2003
  51. Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Ids
    From: Sjoerd Westerterp, June 13, 2003
  52. Information on Aplysia diet
    From: Ana Karina Yepes, February 6, 2003
  53. Aplysia dactylomela from Lord Howe Island
    From: W.B. Rudman, January 18, 2003
  54. Aplysia dactylomela from Equatorial Guinea
    From: Felix Villares, October 14, 2002
  55. 'Mango Seeds' = Aplysia dactylomela
    From: Dr. Ray McAllister, June 13, 2002
  56. Spanish Dancer congregation in Florida
    From: Dr. Ray McAllister, June 7, 2002
  57. Aplysia dactylomela feeding
    From: Anne DuPont, June 3, 2002
  58. Aplysia dactylomela in the Bahamas
    From: Anne DuPont, May 27, 2002
  59. Colour variation in Aplysia dactylomela
    From: Anne DuPont, April 21, 2002
  60. Sea Hare from Puerto Rico
    From: Natalie Manno, April 15, 2002
  61. Seahares in New Zealand
    From: Leanne Ticehurst, March 6, 2002
  62. Aplysia dactylomela from the Canary Ids
    From: Simon and Jill Warwick, December 5, 2001
  63. Feeding preference of Aplysia dactylomela
    From: Patricia Chen, October 26, 2001
  64. Black Sea Hare and mystery from Curacao
    From: John Dohmen, June 20, 2001
  65. Re: Sea Hare from Thailand
    From: Kathe R. Jensen, May 10, 2001
  66. Sea Hare from Thailand
    From: Walabha Sinbul, May 4, 2001
  67. Re: Aplysia from South Africa
    From: Richard Willan, January 17, 2001
  68. More photos of possible Aplysia oculifera
    From: Valda Fraser, January 14, 2001
  69. Aplysia oculifera? from South Africa
    From: Valda Fraser, January 10, 2001
  70. Aplysia dactylomela swimming
    From: Anne Dupont, December 11, 1999
  71. Aplysia dactylomela from Florida
    From: Anne Dupont, October 15, 1999
  72. Sea Hares - Mass mortality in Florida
    From: Annie Troutman, June 4, 1999
  73. Aplysia dactylomela? from Bahamas
    From: Troy Bartlett, April 19, 1999

Show factsheet and all related messages