Polycera capensis laying eggs

March 26, 2003
From: Leanne & David Atkinson


Dear Bill,
We've been reading some old discussion about Polycera capensis on the Forum. Until then we'd assumed it was a "native" of Port Stephens since it occurs in all the major harbour dive sites; Halifax Park, Little Beach, Fly Point and The Pipeline/Fisherman's Co-Op. Soft Corals. I've (Leanne) been photographing it there since 1985. It is relatively common there in the summer months even in the October 2001 to April 2002 season that was very poor for nudibranchs. We've sent this photo since although you had Polycera capensis eggs on the site you didn't have one actually laying them.

Location: Fly Point, Port Stephens, N.S.W. Eastern Australia
Depth: 14m
Date: 9th October 2002
Daytime on the high tide

Leanne & David Atkinson

atk@hunterlink.net.au

Atkinson, L & D., 2003 (Mar 26) Polycera capensis laying eggs. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/9425

Thanks Leanne & David,
The presence of these animals which feed on 'ephemeral' bryozoan colonies, is highly dependent on the presence of the bryozoan. So a semi-permanent population of P. capensis in Port Stephens is more a measure of the health of the bryozoan populations, than a measure of the origin of P. capensis. I guess there may be a way using DNA to unravel the mystery of whether P. capensis originated at the Cape of Good Hope, or was just first found there. Similar mysteries exist with Polycera hedgepethi and Thecacera pennigera.

The weedy growth it is on is the arborescent bryozoan Bugula dentata, which is its usual food colony. There is a message on the Forum showing it on Bugula with Tambja verconis, which also prefers this bryozoan.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2003 (Mar 26). Comment on Polycera capensis laying eggs by Leanne & David Atkinson. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/9425

Factsheet

Polycera capensis

Related messages

  1. Polycera capensis from Bare Island, Sydney
    From: Andrew Trevor-Jones, March 16, 2007
  2. Re: First record of Polycera chilluna from S.Africa
    From: Peter Southwood, February 9, 2007
  3. Re: First record of Polycera chilluna from S.Africa
    From: Wilhelm van Zyl, January 24, 2007
  4. First record of Polycera chilluna from S.Africa?
    From: Wilhelm van Zyl, January 22, 2007
  5. Colour forms in Polycera capensis from Sth Africa
    From: Wilhelm van Zyl, January 22, 2007
  6. Polycera capensis laying eggs
    From: Leanne & David Atkinson, February 6, 2006
  7. Polycera capensis feeding
    From: Leanne & David Atkinson, January 26, 2006
  8. Polycera capensis from eastern Australia
    From: Bruce Potter, November 23, 2005
  9. Polycera capensis from Jervis Bay [1]
    From: Sue Newson, June 4, 2003
  10. Polycera capensis from Jervis Bay [2]
    From: Sue Newson, June 4, 2003
  11. Polycera capensis mating
    From: Leanne & David Atkinson, April 3, 2003
  12. Polycera cf. capensis from South Africa
    From: Valda Fraser, January 31, 2003
  13. Polycera capensis from Cape Town
    From: Rudolph van Jaarsveld, January 31, 2003
  14. Polycera capensis from Sydney
    From: Iain Whyte, December 2, 2002
  15. Polycera capensis from Port Stephens, NSW
    From: Allan Saben, November 20, 2002
  16. Polycerid from South Africa
    From: Erwin Koehler, February 1, 2002
  17. Polycera capensis in southern New South Wales
    From: Erik Schloegl, March 26, 2001
  18. Polycera capensis from Sydney
    From: P.Zylstra & H.Rothenfluh, June 19, 2000
  19. Polycera capensis south of Sydney
    From: Erik Schloegl, March 6, 2000
  20. Distribution of Polycera capensis in Australia
    From: Richard Willan, October 8, 1998

Show factsheet and all related messages