Scyllaea pelagica

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Scyllaea pelagica
Scyllaea pelagica - - Print - Iconographia Zoologica - Special Collections University of Amsterdam - UBAINV0274 080 16 0002.tif
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Heterobranchia
Order: Nudibranchia
Suborder: Cladobranchia
Family: Scyllaeidae
Genus: Scyllaea
Species:
S. pelagica
Binomial name
Scyllaea pelagica
Linnaeus, 1758 [1]
Synonyms [1]
  • Scyllaea edwardsii A. E. Verrill, 1878
  • Scyllaea grayae A. Adams & Reeve, 1850
  • Scyllaea pelagica var. marginata Bergh, 1871

Scyllaea pelagica, common name the sargassum nudibranch, is a species of nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Scyllaeidae. This species lives among floating seaweed in the world's oceans, feeding on hydroids.

Contents

Description

Scyllaea pelagica is a sturdy nudibranch that grows to a length of about 10 cm (4 in). It is dorso-ventrally flattened. At the anterior end there are two pairs of sensory tentacles and a pair of rhinophores enclosed in large rhinophore sheaths. On the sides of the body are two pairs of irregular lobes with toothed edges and squared ends known as cerata. The inner surfaces of these bear numerous small gills. At the posterior end of the body there is a flattened dorsal crest. The skin is smooth except for a few conical tubercles. The colour is a dull yellowish-brown or greenish-brown with some small white markings. Sometimes there is a row of tiny bright blue spots along each side. [1] [2] [3]

Distribution

Scyllaea pelagica occurs globally in pantropical oceans among floating masses of weed. [2] It is especially common in the Caribbean area and Gulf of Mexico and it often gets washed up onto the beach with seaweed after storms. [4]

Biology

Scyllaea pelagica is nearly always a pelagic species but is occasionally found on brown seaweed anchored to the seabed. It spends its life among sargasso weed ( Sargassum spp.) floating in tropical seas where it is well camouflaged. It feeds by grazing on the hydroids that grow on the weed [3] and if it gets detached from the fronds can swim to a limited extent by flexing its body. [4]

Scyllaea pelagica is a hermaphrodite. Two individuals come together to exchange sperm through their genital openings and fertilisation is internal. The eggs are laid in a jelly coated mass on the weed and the trochophore larvae are planktonic. [3] Studies using radioactive carbon labelling have shown that in nutrient-poor waters such as the Sargasso Sea, the larvae of Scyllaea pelagica can directly incorporate into their epidermis and cerata, amino acids that have been added to the water. [5]

Related Research Articles

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The Sargasso Sea is a region of the Atlantic Ocean bounded by four currents forming an ocean gyre. Unlike all other regions called seas, it has no land boundaries. It is distinguished from other parts of the Atlantic Ocean by its characteristic brown Sargassum seaweed and often calm blue water.

<i>Sargassum</i> Genus of brown algae

Sargassum is a genus of brown macroalgae (seaweed) in the order Fucales of the Phaeophyceae class. Numerous species are distributed throughout the temperate and tropical oceans of the world, where they generally inhabit shallow water and coral reefs, and the genus is widely known for its planktonic (free-floating) species. Most species within the class Phaeophyceae are predominantly cold-water organisms that benefit from nutrients upwelling, but the genus Sargassum appears to be an exception. Any number of the normally benthic species may take on a planktonic, often pelagic existence after being removed from reefs during rough weather. Two species have become holopelagic—reproducing vegetatively and never attaching to the seafloor during their lifecycles. The Atlantic Ocean's Sargasso Sea was named after the algae, as it hosts a large amount of Sargassum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sargassum fish</span> Species of fish

The sargassum fish, anglerfish, or frog fish is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Antennariidae, the frogfishes, the only species in the genus Histrio. It lives among Sargassum seaweed which floats in subtropical oceans. The scientific name comes from the Latin histrio meaning a stage player or actor and refers to the fish's feeding behaviour.

<i>Doto amyra</i> Species of gastropod

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<i>Melibe leonina</i> Species of gastropod

Melibe leonina, commonly referred to as the hooded nudibranch, lion nudibranch, or lion's mane nudibranch, is a species of predatory nudibranch in the family Tethydidae.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bornellidae</span> Family of gastropods

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<i>Paraflabellina funeka</i> Species of gastropod

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<i>Doto coronata</i> Species of mollusc

Doto coronata is a species of small sea slug or nudibranch, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusc in the family Dotidae. It is the type species of the genus Doto.

The black-dot nudibranch, Caloria sp. 1, as designated by Gosliner, 1987, is a species of sea slug, specifically an aeolid nudibranch. They are marine gastropod molluscs in the family Facelinidae.

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<i>Cratena capensis</i> Species of gastropod

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<i>Planes minutus</i> Species of crab

Planes minutus is a species of pelagic crab that lives in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is typically less than 10 mm (0.4 in) long across the back, and is variable in colouration, to match its background. It may have been the crab seen by Christopher Columbus on Sargassum weed in the Sargasso Sea in 1492.

<i>Scyllaea</i> Genus of gastropods

Scyllaea is a genus of nudibranchs. They are marine gastropod molluscs in the family Scyllaeidae.

<i>Portunus sayi</i> Species of crab

Portunus sayi, the sargassum swimming crab, is a species of pelagic crab in the family Portunidae. It is found in the western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea where it makes its home among floating mats of Sargassum seaweed. It was named in honour of the American naturalist Thomas Say.

<i>Cratena peregrina</i> Species of gastropod

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<i>Berghia stephanieae</i> Species of gastropod

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<i>Aeolidia loui</i> Species of gastropod

Aeolidia loui is a species of sea slugs, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Aeolidiidae. It has been regarded as the same species as the NE Atlantic Aeolidia papillosa but is now known to be a distinct species. Common names include shaggy mouse nudibranch, and shag-rug nudibranch.

Janolus flavoanulatus is a sea slug species. The specific name is derived from Latin words flavus (“yellow”) and anulatus (“ringed”). These soft-bodied mollusks are known for their extraordinary colors and prominent forms. The first description of this species was reported by researcher Terry Gosliner, a leading researcher in the evolutionary history of nudibranchs. Upon his conducted research in the Philippines, Gosliner named Janolus flavoanulatus for its yellow ring around its cerata.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gofas, Serge (2012). "Scyllaea pelagica Linnaeus, 1758". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 2012-12-14.
  2. 1 2 Rudman, W. B. (2004). "Scyllaea pelagica Linnaeus, 1758". The Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum. Retrieved 2012-12-15.
  3. 1 2 3 Vaughn, Gabriel (2000). "Scyllaea pelagica". Animal Diversity Web. University of Michigan. Retrieved 2012-12-14.
  4. 1 2 "Scyllaea pelagica, Sargassum nudibranch". Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved 2012-12-15.
  5. Ferguson, John C. (1988). "Autoradiographic demonstration of the use of free amino acid by Sargasso Sea zooplankton". Plankton Research. 10 (6): 1225–1238. doi:10.1093/plankt/10.6.1225.