Hypselodoris sp. 4

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: DORIDINA
Superfamily: EUDORIDOIDEA
Family: Chromodorididae

DISTRIBUTION

Caribbean

PHOTO

off Boca Raton, Florida, USA. Depth: 12 feet. September 16, 2001. PHOTO: Anne Dupont.

Note added 31 May 2010: This species has recently been named H. juliae. Messages previously attached to this Fact Sheet have been moved to H. juliae.

This doesn't seem to be the 'H. edenticulata form' of H. picta, or H. acriba or H. ruthae. Two characteristic features of this 'species' seem to be the dark patch at the edge of the mantle about half way down each side, and the white spots on the gills. Dave Behren's photo of H. acriba shows a similar dark patch at the mantle edge. This is not mentioned in the original description of the species but is clear in this photo. One of the major differences between the two is that in H. acriba the yellow lines on the mantle form a reticulate network while in this animal they form a series of longitudinal lines. However in some animals the lines do form a reticulate pattern, reminiscent of H. acriba.

See messages below for further discussion on its identity.

Authorship details
Rudman, W.B., 2001 (September 23) Hypselodoris sp. 4 [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/hypssp4