Hexabranchidae | |
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Hexabranchus lacer , 90 mm in length, photographed at night in Bali | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Mollusca |
Class: | Gastropoda |
Order: | Nudibranchia |
Family: | Hexabranchidae Bergh, 1891 [1] |
Genus: | Hexabranchus Ehrenberg, 1831 [2] |
Diversity [3] | |
6 species |
Hexabranchidae is a family of colourful nudibranchs (often called "sea slugs") which contains only a single genus, Hexabranchus, with six species.
This family is one of the many families of dorid nudibranchs in the suborder Doridina, named after Doris, who was a sea nymph in ancient Greek mythology.
The genus contains one of the largest known species of nudibranch in the world, H. giganteus , which grows up to or exceeding 50 cm in length. [3] [4] Hexabranchus sanguineus is known to use chemical defenses derived from the sponge it eats and uses the chemical compounds to defend itself from potential fish predators. [5]
There are six species within the genus Hexabranchus: