Dendrodoris krebsii
(Mörch, 1863)
Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: DORIDINA
Superfamily: EUDORIDOIDEA
Family: Dendrodorididae
DISTRIBUTION
Tropical west Atllantic from Florida to Brazil. Tropical East Pacific.
PHOTO
Locality: Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles, Caribbean. Depth: 30 feet. Length: 1.5 inches. July 1999. coral heads. Photographer: Keri Wilk
Apparently ranges in colour from this pale mottled form to uniform black with a thin red border.
References:
• Mörch, O.A.L. (1863) Contributions à la Faune malacologique des Antilles danoises. Journal de Conchyliologie, 11: 21-43.
• Valdés, A., Ortea, J., Ávila, C. & Ballesteros, M. 1996. Review of the genus Dendrodoris (Gastropoda, Nudibranchia) in the Atlantic Ocean. Journal of Molluscan Studies, 62: 1-31.
Rudman, W.B., 2000 (October 10) Dendrodoris krebsii (Mörch, 1863). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/dendkreb
Related messages
Dendrodoris from Brazil [2]
September 22, 2007
From: Vinicius Padula
Dear Bill,
Two more pictures of Dendrodoris krebsii from Brazil to add to those in my earlier message [#20759 ].
Locality: Upper photo: couple from Guanabara bay, Rio de Janeiro. Lower photo: eggmass from Guanabara bay, Rio de Janeiro., 1 meter, Brazil, Atlantic, 2007, On a rock. Length: about 10 cm. Photographer: Vinicius Padula.
Best wishes,
Vinicius
viniciuspadula@yahoo.com
Padula, V., 2007 (Sep 22) Dendrodoris from Brazil [2]. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20760
Thanks Vinicius,
If you have more than one species, the egg ribbon may be a useful clue. Certainly the egg ribbon, size of eggs, etc are proving useful in separtaing at least some of the Indo-West Pacific forms. When I get a moment I mean to prepare a page on Dendrodoris arborescens which Brodie & Calado (2006) consider distinct.
- Brodie, G.D. & Calado, G. 2006. Dendrodoris arborescens (Collingwood, 1881) (Mollusca: Nudibranchia): larval characterstics reveal a masked porostome species. Records of the Western Australian Museum Suppl. 69: 119-126.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Dendrodoris from Brazil [1]
September 22, 2007
From: Vinicius Padula
Dear Bill,
To complement the discussion about Dendrodoris in the western Atlantic I´m sending some pictures of colour variations of we are calling Dendrodoris krebsii.
Locality: Upper photos: adult specimens from Cabo Frio. Lower photo: young specimens from Florianópolis. All specimens photographed or collected on intertidal areas, Brazil, Atlantic, 2006, 2007, Intertidal . Length: Juveniles approx 2-3 cm, adults from 6 to 10 cm. Photographer: Vinicius Padula.
I believe that there are still some big questions to answer concerning Dendrodoris in the eastern Pacific- west Atlantic oceans.
For example, we need to remember one recent record of Dendrodoris senegalensis from Brazil (see García & Troncoso, 2003) on Fernando de Noronha archipelago, Brazil.
-
García, F.J. & Troncoso, J.S. 2003.Two unknown species of Mollusca Gastropoda from the Archipelago Fernando de Noronha (Brazil), with description of a new species belonging to the genus Phidiana Gray, 1850 and a new record of Dendrodoris senegalensis Bouchet, 1975. Scientia Marina, 67(2): 159-166.
Best wishes,
Vinicius Padula
viniciuspadula@yahoo.com
Padula, V., 2007 (Sep 22) Dendrodoris from Brazil [1]. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20759
Dear Vinicius,
Thanks very much for these photos and those in your second message [#20760], I am sure this is not the last we will hear of Dendrodoris krebsii, D. senegalensis and the others. It looks very much like the Dendrodoris nigra, D. rubra, D. fumata etc problem in the Indo-West Pacific
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Dendrodoris krebsii from Florida
September 20, 2007
From: Jay Wilmar
Hello,
I came across these animals in shallow intertidal waters on South Florida's Atlantic coast. Not sure what they are. I was hoping someone can assist in identifying these?
Locality: channel, 3 feet, FL, US, Atlantic Ocean, 8 september 2007, intertidal. Length: between 1- 2 inches. Photo: Jay Wilmar
Jay Wilmar
Naturalmc1@hotmail.com
Wilmar, J., 2007 (Sep 20) Dendrodoris krebsii from Florida. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20712
Dear Jay
These are both considered colour forms of Dendrodoris krebsii. I must say that the animal in the lower photo reminds me of Dendrodoris grandiflora from the eastern Atlantic, but as I mention in a separate message [#20743 ] Angel Valdes can find no anatomical differences.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Dendrodoris from Sebastian Inlet, Florida?
September 19, 2007
From: Matthew Scripter
This black nudibranch was discovered intertidally under a rock in Sebastian Inlet, Florida while I was conducting a university marine biology laboratory.
It appears to be Dendrodoris nigra, but I was surprised to find it in this region as it was not reported by the Fort Pierce office of the Smithsonian. Can this identity be confirmed?
Locality: Sebastian Inlet, 0.1 m, Florida, USA, Atlantic Ocean, 14 September 2007, intertidal rocks. Length: 2.5 cm. Photographer: Matthew J. Scripter.
Matthew J. Scripter.
mscripte@fit.edu
Scripter, M.J., 2007 (Sep 19) Dendrodoris from Sebastian Inlet, Florida?. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/20743Dear Matt,
So far Dendrodoris nigra has not been reported from the Atlantic, and its gills are much more numerous and compact than in your animal. Your animal is Dendrodoris krebsii. It is extremely variable in colour but Angel Valdes [see message #5289] could find no anatomical differences in differently coloured animals he has studied from Brazil to the Caribbean
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Dendrodoris krebsii from Bonaire
December 2, 2005
From: Les Wilk
Hi Bill;
Here are a couple more Dendrodoris krebsii from the Caribbean.
Locality: Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles, Caribbean. Depth: 30 feet. Length: 1.5 inches. July 1999. coral heads. Photographer: Keri Wilk
Les
wilk@reefnet.ca
Wilk, L., 2005 (Dec 2) Dendrodoris krebsii from Bonaire. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/15371Dear Les,
Thanks for these photos, they give us a much better of the living animal than we have at present. It is one of the elongate species with a narrow mantle skirt.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Dendrodoris krebsii from Jamaica
October 9, 2003
From: Ross W. Gundersen
Dear Bill:
Here is another sea slug from Jamaica. As I said in my first message, all specimens were collected from St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica, West Indies. Photo: R. Gundersen.
Here is Dendrodoris krebsii. Found under rocks on shoreline. Can shed outer edge of mantle.
Best wishes,
Ross
ross.gundersen@uwp.edu
Gundersen, R.W., 2003 (Oct 9) Dendrodoris krebsii from Jamaica. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/11112Dear Ross,
I am glad you mentioned that this species 'Can shed outer edge of mantle' as it alerted me to the fact that you have two different species in this message.
The upper photo is a species of Discodoris, almost certainly what is called Discodoris evelinae but may well be the same as the Indo-West Pacific species Discodoris lilacina which is well-known fpr his habit of breaking off the mantle skirt when disturbed. One of the other names for D. lilacina is Discodoris fragilis in recognition of this behaviour. [See autotomy Page.]
The lower photo is almost certainly a species of Dendrodoris, and as Valdes and his colleagues have suggested, D. krebsii is the best name at present for this animal.
• Valdés, A., Ortea, J., Ávila, C. & Ballesteros, M. 1996. Review of the genus Dendrodoris (Gastropoda, Nudibranchia) in the Atlantic Ocean. Journal of Molluscan Studies, 62: 1-31.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Re: Green Dendrodoris? from Colombia
September 19, 2001
From: Angel Valdes
Dear Bill and Elianny,
The animal in the photo is clearly Dendrodoris krebsii. For the paper on the Atlantic Dendrodoris (Valdes et al., 1996), I looked at a number of specimens of this species, collected from Brazil to the Caribbean, with very different color patterns, and all of them have an identical anatomy. I found under the same rock specimens with completely different color patterns that belonged to the same species. I am positive that there is a single species of Dendrodoris in the western Atlantic and Caribbean, and not a complex of species.
Reference:
• Valdés, A., Ortea, J., Ávila, C. & Ballesteros, M. 1996. Review of the genus Dendrodoris (Gastropoda, Nudibranchia) in the Atlantic Ocean. Journal of Molluscan Studies, 62: 1-31.
Best regards,
Angel
avaldes@nhm.org
Valdes, A., 2001 (Sep 19) Re: Green Dendrodoris? from Colombia. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/5289Thanks Angel,
I agree, that like the Indo-West Pacific species D. fumata and D. nigra, there doesn't seem to be any noticeable anatomical differences between the colour forms of D. krebsii but I don't think we should close out eyes to the possibility that one or more of the colour forms might be a cryptic species. All I was suggesting is that Elianny and her colleagues make a note of any egg masses her animals produce and the food they eat. If nothing else it would be good to be able to say that all the colour forms have the same egg ribbon, the same development type, eat the same sponges etc. Alternatively they may find over time that there is a difference somewhere. Who knows? I think its a good idea to get into the habit of systematically looking for and noting this sort of thing when you are collecting. It means that if in 10 years you discover that one 'species' is in fact two you can check back and see whether the live animals can give you a character you previously did not realise the significance of at the time of collection.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Green Dendrodoris? from Colombia
September 17, 2001
From: Elianny Dominguez Tejo
Dear Bill,
Could this animal belong to the genera Dendrodoris or Discodoris? It has beautifully shaped rinophores, and on the posterior end it has a crown of gills just like the ones on Dendrodoris krebsii. The color is light green (like olive green) with dark spots of darker green.
We found on rocky substratum (15 cm of depth) on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, the animal is about 5 cm long.
Cheers,
Elianny Dominguez
elicelotte@latinmail.com
Dominguez Tejo, E., 2001 (Sep 17) Green Dendrodoris? from Colombia. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/5277Dear Elianny,
This animal is clearly a Dendrodoris and falls within our present understanding of Dendrodoris krebsii. Gilianne Brodie has suggested that this 'species' may be a complex of species like the Dendrodoris nigra - Dendrodoris fumata group in the Indo-West Pacific so I guess it would be useful to keep a note of colour forms and whether they lay different sort of eggs etc. Gilianne also mentioned that the original spelling was krebsii not krebsi. I was wrong to suggest the new Rules obliged us to convert the spelling to krebsi - they do not. As previously, they just accept that the two spellings are to be considered to be identical spellings as far as the Rules are concerned.
Cheers,
Bill Rudman
Comments on Dendrodoris krebsi
October 18, 2000
From: Gilianne Brodie
Dear Bill
I viewed with great interest the photographs of the black and white nudibranch sent to the Forum by Phanor Montoya of Columbia. I think the "Dendrodoris krebsii" group may well be a species complex similar to the Indo-Pacific Dendrodoris nigra / Dendrodoris fumata situation where a wide variety of differently coloured individuals results from several factors; the presence of more than one species that look similar, a number of different colour forms within a species, and ontogenetic colour changes in individuals with growth. Only very detailed investigations of the internal organs of members of this group, their individual growth changes and other aspects of their biology will unravel the puzzle. Also the name krebsii with two ii's is the original form used by Morch in his 1863 description.
Cheers
Gilianne
gilianne.brodie@jcu.edu.au
Brodie, G., 2000 (Oct 18) Comments on Dendrodoris krebsi. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/3188Thanks Gilianne,
My understanding of the Code is that the spelling should be changed to krebsi.
Cheers,
Bill Rudman.
Dendrodoris krebsii from Colombia
October 11, 2000
From: Phanor Montoya
Dear Bill,
Is this Dendrodoris krebsii? It is from Santa Marta, Colombia. I think this is the black variety of D. krebsii. It has the tip of rhinophores white. The mantle border has vein markings.
With regards,
Phanor Montoya
phamont@eudoramail.com
Dear Phanor,
This certainly looks like Dendrodoris krebsi. You ask if it is the black variety. Having just looked at the photo in Dave Behrens book - Pacific Coast Nudibranchs - of a black animal with a red border, I can say that there are definitely much blacker specimens.
Can anyone give us some idea of the colour range of this species. Is it normally mottled in the Caribbean or does the black colour form occur there as well?
And if there is a linguist out there should we be using krebsii. I would think the spelling should be krebsi?
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.
