| Berthellina edwardsii | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Order: | Pleurobranchida |
| Family: | Pleurobranchidae |
| Genus: | Berthellina |
| Species: | B. edwardsii |
| Binomial name | |
| Berthellina edwardsii | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
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Berthellina edwardsii is a species of sea slug, a gastropod mollusc in the family Pleurobranchidae. It is native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Berthellina edwardsii is a large sea slug, growing to a length of 5 to 6 cm (2.0 to 2.4 in). The head bears a pair of smooth, rolled rhinophores at the top, but the triangular buccal veil and a pair of low-lying tentacles are less discernable. There is a small flattened internal shell which looks whitish when viewed through the translucent tissue, and there are dark spots visible through the dorsal surface which are the digestive glands. The foot is broad, and the gill is located on the right side of the body, between the foot and the mantle. The colour varies from whitish or lemon yellow to deep orange-red. [2] This sea slug is very similar in appearance to Berthella aurantiaca ; there are no distinctive external features distinguishing the two, but B. aurantiaca has a much larger internal shell. [3] Another similar species is Berthella stellata , but that is rather smaller, transparent or whitish, and has a star-shaped opaque pattern in the centre of its back. [2]
Berthellina edwardsii is mainly nocturnal, hiding during the day in a crack or under a rock. Glands on its mantle secrete a white acidic fluid which is distasteful to fish. [2] The bright colouring serves as a warning of its toxicity to potential predators. [4]
Berthellina edwardsii feeds largely on sponges and tunicates, rasping the surface with the fine teeth on its radula. Breeding takes place in autumn. Each individual is a hermaphrodite, and a pair of slugs will orientate themselves so that their genital openings are close together, and exchange sperm. The eggs are numerous but tiny, and are laid in a whitish, coiled cylindrical, jelly-like ribbon, stuck to the substrate. [2]
A squid is a mollusc with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting these criteria. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, and a mantle. They are mainly soft-bodied, like octopuses, but have a small internal skeleton in the form of a rod-like gladius or pen, made of chitin.
Nudibranchs belong to the order Nudibranchia, a group of soft-bodied marine gastropod molluscs that shed their shells after their larval stage. They are noted for their often extraordinary colours and striking forms, and they have been given colourful nicknames to match, such as "clown", "marigold", "splendid", "dancer", "dragon", and "sea rabbit". Currently, about 3,000 valid species of nudibranchs are known.
The mantle is a significant part of the anatomy of molluscs: it is the dorsal body wall which covers the visceral mass and usually protrudes in the form of flaps well beyond the visceral mass itself.
Limax maximus, known by the common names great grey slug and leopard slug, is a species of slug in the family Limacidae, the keeled slugs. It is among the largest keeled slugs, Limax cinereoniger being the largest.
Umbraculum umbraculum, common name the umbrella slug, is a species of large sea snail or limpet, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Umbraculidae. It is found in tropical to warm temperate parts of the Indo-Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, where it feeds on sponges.
The Pleurobranchidae are a taxonomic family of sea slugs, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Pleurobranchomorpha.
Berthella ornata is a species of sea slug, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Pleurobranchidae. It is sometimes called the ornate side-gilled sea slug.
Cypraea pantherina, common name the panther cowry, is a species of large tropical sea snail, a cowry, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries. The panther cowry is one of only two species currently included in the genus Cypraea, as all other species previously belonging to the genus Cypraea have been reassigned to other genera within the family Cypraeidae.
Berthella is a genus of sea slugs, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Pleurobranchidae.
Berthellina is a genus of sea slugs, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Pleurobranchidae.
Berthella martensi is a species of sea slug, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Pleurobranchidae.
Berthella plumula, commonly known as yellow-plumed sea slug, is a gastropod mollusc usually found on rocky coasts in the infralittoral zone and which can live up to 30m depth.
Lamellaria perspicua, commonly known as the transparent lamellaria, is a species of small, slug-like sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Velutinidae. It is native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, where it feeds on colonial ascidians.
Berthella ocellata is a species of sea slug, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Pleurobranchidae. It is native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea where it inhabits the shallow sublittoral zone.
Berthella stellata is a species of sea slug in the family Pleurobranchidae. It is found in shallow water in the Mediterranean Sea, the western Atlantic Ocean and the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region.
Berthellina citrina, the orange gumdrop, is a species of sea slug in the family Pleurobranchidae. It is found in rock pools in the intertidal zone and in shallow water in the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region.
Oscarella tuberculata is a species of sponge in the order Homosclerophorida. It is endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, where it forms encrusting colonies on rocks and other hard surfaces.
Philinopsis depicta is a species of sea slug, an opisthobranch gastropod mollusc in the family Aglajidae. It is native to the Mediterranean Sea where it lives on the sandy seabed in shallow water. It is a predator.
Thuridilla vataae is a species of sacoglossan sea slug, a shell-less marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusc in the family Plakobranchidae. It is native to the tropical Indo-Pacific. It was first described by the French zoologist Jean Risbec in 1928; its specific name refers to the Bay of Anse Vata, just south of Nouméa, New Caledonia, where the type specimen was collected.
Aglaja tricolorata is a species of sea slug, an opisthobranch gastropod mollusc in the family Aglajidae. It is native to the Mediterranean Sea and the tropical eastern Atlantic Ocean where it lives in shallow water on the sandy seabed.