Flabellina dushia
(Marcus & Marcus, 1963)

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: AEOLIDINA
Family: Flabellinidae

DISTRIBUTION

Caribbean Sea, Canary Ids, Cape Verde Ids.

PHOTO

St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica, West Indies.  Dredged at 5 m in Thallassia. 8 mm in length. Photo: R. Gundersen.

Note: Formerly known on Forum as Flabellina sp. 5.

Small flabellinid with opaque white body, oral tentacles and rhinophores. Ceratal wall transparent but digestive gland duct rages in colour from red to bright orange yellow. In some animals with a an orange or yellow digestive gland there is a deeper orange or red band at the upper end of the digestive gland duct giving the cerata the appearance of a having a subterminal orange-red band. The rhinophores are relatively short, smooth and taper to a rounded tip.

This species has also been reported from the Bahamas (Redfern, 2001) as Flabellina sp. B. It has recently been redescribed as Coryphella dushia (see Ortea, Caballer & Moro, 2004) from material collected from the Canary Islands and Cape Verde. Marcus & Marcus's original description is very brief, and the colour is described as 'white, without lines or other marks; the diverticula of the digestive gland from orange to brown '. Although this is not much to base an identification on, Ortea, Caballer & Moro's animals match the original description in shape of the radula and general arrangement of the cerata.

  • Marcus, Ev. &  Marcus, Er. (1963) Opisthobranchs from the Lesser Antilles. Studies on the fauna of Curaçao and other Caribbean islands. 79: 1-76
  • Ortea, J., M. Caballer & L. Moro. 2004. Dos aeolidaceos con ceratas rojos de la region macaronesica y el mar Caribe (Mollusca: Nudibranchia). Vieraea, 32: 83-96.
  • Redfern, C. (2001) Bahamian Seashells: a Thousand Species from Abaco, Bahamas. BahamianSeashells.com, Inc., Boca Raton, Florida,  280 pp.
Authorship details
Rudman, W.B., 2005 (February 4) Flabellina dushia (Marcus & Marcus, 1963). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/flabdush

Related messages


Flabellina dushia from Brazil

January 12, 2007
From: Armando de Luca Jr

Dear Bill,

This photo was taken in Queimada Grande Island, Tocantins wreck, 24º 29'S ; 46º 40' W, Sao Paulo, Brasil. Depth 18 m, water temperature 18ºC, visibility 15 m, nudibranch size 1 cm, 23 December 2006. Photographer: Armando de Luca Jr.

Best wishes.
Armando de Luca Jr.

mergulho@nautilusdive.com.br

de Luca, A., 2007 (Jan 12) Flabellina dushia from Brazil. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/19149

Dear Armando

I think from the arrangement of the cerata, its colour, and the smooth rhinophores, that this is Flabellina dushia. If so, this would be another new record from Brazil, as I think this species is known only from the Caribbean and the eastern Atlantic Canary Ids and Cape Verde Ids.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2007 (Jan 12). Comment on Flabellina dushia from Brazil by Armando de Luca Jr. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/19149

Does Flabellina sp. 5 = Flabellina dushia?

February 5, 2005
From: Colin Redfern

Dear Bill,
Coryphella dushia Marcus & Marcus, 1963 was recently redescribed by Ortea, Caballer & Moro (2004) from material collected from the Canary Islands and Cape Verde, and they suggest that Flabellina sp. B in Bahamian Seashells may be that species. Is this therefore a possible identification for the Forum's Flabellina sp. 5 ?

  • Ortea, J., M. Caballer & L. Moro. 2004. Dos aeolidaceos con ceratas rojos de la region macaronesica y el mar Caribe (Mollusca: Nudibranchia). Vieraea, 32: 83-96.

Best wishes,
Colin:

bahamianseashells@att.net

Redfern, C., 2005 (Feb 5) Does Flabellina sp. 5 = Flabellina dushia?. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/13080

Dear Colin,
Thanks for drawing this to my attention. Although the original description of Coryphella dushia was very brief, there is certainly nothing in it that precludes Ortea, Caballer & Moro's animals from being identified with it. I have discussed this a little on the Fact Sheet I have prepared for it as Flabellina dushia. The photos in your book, Bahamian Seashells, show a good colour range of the species. Flabellina sp. 5 is indeed the same.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2005 (Feb 5). Comment on Does Flabellina sp. 5 = Flabellina dushia? by Colin Redfern. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/13080

Flabellina from Jamaica

October 24, 2003
From: Ross W. Gundersen

Note added 4 February 2005: This animal has been identified as Flabellina dushia

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. Most specimens were collected using a light weight dredge and photographed by R. Gundersen.

This animal was 8 mm in length. Dredged at 5 m in Thallassia

Best wishes,
Ross

ross.gundersen@uwp.edu

Gundersen, R.W., 2003 (Oct 24) Flabellina from Jamaica. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/11139

Thanks Ross,
I think this is the species Colin Redfern labels Flabellina sp. B in Bahamian Seashells. I don't know any with this colour and smooth rhinophores

Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2003 (Oct 24). Comment on Flabellina from Jamaica by Ross W. Gundersen. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/11139