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 California sea hare is a species of sea slug in the sea hare family, Aplysiidae. It is found in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California in the United States and northwestern Mexico.
The clade Anaspidea, commonly known as sea hares, are medium-sized to very large opisthobranch gastropod molluscs with a soft internal shell made of protein. These are marine gastropod molluscs in the superfamilies Aplysioidea and Akeroidea.
Sea slug is a common name for some marine invertebrates with varying levels of resemblance to terrestrial slugs. Most creatures known as sea slugs are gastropods, i.e. they are sea snails that, over evolutionary time, have either entirely lost their shells or have seemingly lost their shells due to having a significantly reduced or internal shell. The name "sea slug" is often applied to nudibranchs and a paraphyletic set of other marine gastropods without apparent shells.
Opisthobranchs is a now informal name for a large and diverse group of specialized complex gastropods which used to be united in the subclass Opisthobranchia. That taxon is no longer considered to represent a monophyletic grouping.
Aplysiidae is the only family in the superfamily Aplysioidea, within the clade Anaspidea. These animals are commonly called sea hares because, unlike most sea slugs, they are often quite large, and when they are underwater, their rounded body shape and the long rhinophores on their heads mean that their overall shape resembles that of a sitting rabbit or hare. Sea hares are however sea snails with shells reduced to a small plate hidden between the parapodia, and some species are extremely large. The Californian black sea hare, Aplysia vaccaria is arguably the largest living gastropod species, and is certainly the largest living heterobranch gastropod.
Bursatella leachii, whose common name is the ragged sea hare or shaggy sea hare, is a species of large sea slug: a marine gastropod mollusk in the sea hare family Aplysiidae. It has an almost pantropical distribution, from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean, but excluding the central and eastern Pacific Ocean. Its long planktonic larval period and short life cycle make able to colonise new areas and increase dramatically in number if food supplies are favourable.
Dolabella is a genus of sea slugs or sea hares, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.
Notarchus is a genus of sea slugs or sea hares, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.
Syphonota geographica, or the geographic sea hare, is a species of sea slug or sea hare, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.
Bursatella is a genus of sea slugs or sea hares, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.
Aplysia fasciata, common name the "mottled sea hare", or the "sooty sea hare", is an Atlantic species of sea hare or sea slug, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae.
Aplysia dactylomela, the spotted sea hare, is a species of large sea slug, a marine opisthobranch gastropod in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.
Aplysia extraordinaria, common name the "extraordinary sea hare", is a very large species of sea slug, more specifically a sea hare, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares. Its distribution includes the coast off of eastern Australia, northern New Zealand, and possibly a wider range.
The spotted sea hare is a species of sea slug in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares. It reaches a length of up to 20 cm (7.9 in) and is found in the northeast Atlantic, ranging from Greenland and Norway to the Mediterranean Sea.
Phyllaplysia taylori, synonym Phyllaplysia zostericola, common names the "eelgrass sea hare" and "Taylor's sea hare", is a species of sea slug, specifically a sea hare, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.
Aplysia vaccaria, also known as the black sea hare and California black sea hare, is a species of extremely large sea slug, a marine, opisthobranch, gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae. It is the largest sea slug species.
Aplysia depilans, the depilatory sea hare, is a species of sea hare or sea slug, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae. Its name has led to a folk etymology that its consumption caused hair loss.
Aplysia morio, the Atlantic black sea hare or sooty sea hare, is a species of sea slug, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares. It lives in warm waters in the Caribbean Sea and off the south and southeastern coast of the United States, where it feeds on seaweed.
Aplysia gigantea is a species of sea slug, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae. The species was first described in the Journal of the Malacological Society of Australia in 1869. A. gigantea is also known more commonly as the sea hare due to their posterior chemosensory tentacles resembling a hare's ear. A. gigantea is the largest known species in Australia of the opisthobranch genus. The species is known to have toxic effects on terrestrial organisms, particularly domestic dogs. Exposure to this species with dogs has been associated with the development of neurotoxicosis, with symptoms ranging from respiratory distress to tremors, muscle fasciculations, and seizures.
