Kingdom Animalia Class Gastropoda Family Dotidae Rank Species | Phylum Mollusca Superfamily Tritonioidea Genus Doto | |
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Similar Doto tuberculata, Doto fragilis, Doto pinnatifida, Doto coronata, Dotidae | ||
Doto cuspidata is a species of sea slug, a dendronotid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Dotidae.
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Distribution
This species was first described from Shetland. It has subsequently been reported widely in Britain and Ireland as far south as Lundy Island, Bristol Channel.
Description
This dendronotid nudibranch has the body spattered with dark brown or black pigment on a cream background. In some individuals the black can merge to give an almost completely black animal. There are no spots on the tips of the ceratal tubercles, which are somewhat pointed and have small white glands inside them, as in most species of Doto. The rims of the rhinophore sheaths are normally divided into lobes.
Ecology
Doto cuspidata feeds on the hydroid Nemertesia ramosa, family Plumulariidae.