Dirona picta from California

July 13, 2000
From: Jeff Goddard


Hi Bill,

Here are two photos and a brief account of the biology of Dirona picta for The Forum. The top photo is by Todd Huspeni of a specimen collected subtidally from Naples Reef, Santa Barbara County, California. The lower photo is of a specimen crawling onto its bryozoan prey, Scrupocellaria californica from Punta Gorda in northern California.

Best wishes,
Jeff

goddard@lifesci.ucsb.edu

Goddard, J., 2000 (Jul 13) Dirona picta from California. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/2691

Thanks Jeff,
I am fascinated by the 'cerata' in D. picta, which I have enlarged views of alongside. If they belonged to an aeolid I would seriously consider looking for some symbiotic plant tissue. Compare them with Phyllodesmium crypticum for general shape. The lower photo with green patches looks very like the brown 'gardens' of zooxanthellae found in Phyllodesmium longicirrum.

It would be interesting to have a look at what is making the greenish markings.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.

Rudman, W.B., 2000 (Jul 13). Comment on Dirona picta from California by Jeff Goddard. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/2691

Factsheet

Dirona picta

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