Nudibranch from British Columbia

July 8, 2001
From: Andy Murch


Hi,

Any chance someone can give me a name for this species of nudibranch. I've never seen anything like it before. Even a family for me to research would be helpful.

It was photographed at Langara Rocks in the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia, Canada.

Approx 1/2" on bull Kelp near surface.

Thankyou.
Andy Murch

andymurch@scubadiving.com

Murch, A., 2001 (Jul 8) Nudibranch from British Columbia. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/4783

Dear Andy,
It's a bit hard to be sure from the angle of the photo juat what the shape of the animal is, but it looks like it could possibly be related to Scyllaea pelagica and Notobryon wardi, two dendronotoideans which live on kelp, feeding on attached hydroid colonies. It appears to have raised rhinophore pockets with crenulate lips, and the pair of flattened 'parapodia?' 'flaps?' about halfway down the body are similar to the parapodia of those two species and the third member of the family Scyllaeidae, which is Crosslandia viridis.

Any other photos, perhaps showing a side view would be helpful,
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2001 (Jul 8). Comment on Nudibranch from British Columbia by Andy Murch. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/4783

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