Goniobranchus leopardus explained

Goniobranchus leopardus, is a species of colourful sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Chromodorididae.^{[1] [2]}

Distribution

This species has been reported from NW Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands.^[3]

Notes and References

1. Gofas, S. (2015). Goniobranchus leopardus (Rudman, 1987). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2015-11-17
2. Johnson R.F. & Gosliner T.M. (2012) Traditional taxonomic groupings mask evolutionary history: A molecular phylogeny and new classification of the chromodorid nudibranchs. PLoS ONE 7(4): e33479
3. Beesley, P.L., Ross, G.J.B. & Wells, A., 1998. Mollusca – The southern synthesis, vol.5, CSIRO,
4. Debelius, H. & Kuiter, R.H. (2007) Nudibranchs of the world. ConchBooks, Frankfurt, 360 pp. page(s): 141
5. Gosliner, T.M., Behrens, D.W. & Valdés, Á. (2008) Indo-Pacific Nudibranchs and seaslugs. A field guide to the world's most diverse fauna. Sea Challengers Natural History Books, Washington, 426 pp. page(s): 217
6. Warren, Lindsay, Corolla, Jean-Pierre, Sittler, Alain-Pierre, (2014) Chromodoris leopardus Rudman, 1987 in : DORIS, January 3, 2014
7. Debelius, Helmut, 2001, Nudibranchs and Sea Snails: Indo-Pacific Field Guide, IKAN – Unterwasserarchiv, Frankfurt, Germany.
8. David Behrens, Nudibranch behaviour, Newworld Publications INC., 2005,
9. Gary Cobb & Richard Willan, Undersea jewels – a colour guide to nudibranchs, Australian Biological Resources Study, 2006,
10. Rudman, W.B., 1999 (January 22) Chromodoris leopardus Rudman, 1987. [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.^[3]

    Description

    Goniobranchus leopardus can reach a maximum size of 6 cm length. The body is elongate with a foot which is distinct from the upper body by a large skirt-like mantle hiding the foot.^[4] The top of the mantle is brownish with dark spots circled with white. The margin of the mantle is white with at the external border a fine purple to electric blue line.^[5] The rhinophores are lamellate and contractile, the base is white topped with blue to purple but they can also be white with a longitudinal blue to purple line. The branched gill has a whitish external side, the internal surface is golden.^{[6] [7] [8] [9]}

    External links