Trisha Shetty (Editor)

Blue speckled nudibranch

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Kingdom
  
Animalia

Family
  
Dendrodorididae

Scientific name
  
Dendrodoris caesia

Higher classification
  
Dendrodoris

Superfamily
  
Phyllidioidea

Genus
  
Dendrodoris

Phylum
  
Mollusca

Rank
  
Species

Blue-speckled nudibranch

Similar
  
Nudibranch, Dendrodoris, Molluscs

The blue-speckled nudibranch (Dendrodoris caesia) is a species of sea slug, a dorid nudibranch. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Dendrodorididae.

Contents

Distribution

This species has so far only been found around the southern African coast from the Cape Peninsula to Port Elizabeth subtidally to at least 20 m. It is probably endemic.

Description

The blue-speckled nudibranch is a large nudibranch with a frilly margin. The speckles can be almost continuous and in some specimens the animal is pink-speckled. The rhinophores are perfoliate and the gill rosette is large and blue-edged. It may reach a total length of 120 mm.

Ecology

This species feeds on a yellow-brown sponge. The egg mass is a messy ribbon of several whorls.

References

Blue-speckled nudibranch Wikipedia