Ziminella salmonacea

Ziminella salmonacea
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Heterobranchia ; clade Euthyneura ; clade Nudipleura ; clade Nudibranchia ; clade Dexiarchia ; clade Cladobranchia ; clade Aeolidida
Superfamily:	Flabellinoidea
Family:	Paracoryphellidae
Genus:	Ziminella
Species:	Z. salmonacea
Binomial name
	Ziminella salmonacea; (Couthouy, 1838) [1]
Synonyms [2]
	Eolis (Cavolina) salmonaceaCouthouy, 1838 ; Eolis bodoensis H. P. C. Möller, 1842 ; Aeolidia approximans L. S. R. Bergh, 1864 ; Cuthona stimpsoni A. E. Verrill, 1879 ; Coryphella stimpsoni laevidens N. Knipowitsch, 1902 ; Flabellina salmonacea(Couthouy, 1838) ;

Last updated March 31, 2019

Ziminella salmonacea, common name the salmon aeolis, is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Paracoryphellidae.^[2]

In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; this kind of name is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism, which is Latinized. A common name is sometimes frequently used, but that is by no means always the case.

In biology, a species ( ) is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. Other ways of defining species include their karyotype, DNA sequence, morphology, behaviour or ecological niche. In addition, paleontologists use the concept of the chronospecies since fossil reproduction cannot be examined. While these definitions may seem adequate, when looked at more closely they represent problematic species concepts. For example, the boundaries between closely related species become unclear with hybridisation, in a species complex of hundreds of similar microspecies, and in a ring species. Also, among organisms that reproduce only asexually, the concept of a reproductive species breaks down, and each clone is potentially a microspecies.

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 actually gastropods, i.e. they are sea snails that over evolutionary time have either completely lost their shells, or have seemingly lost their shells due to having a greatly reduced or internal shell. The name "sea slug" is most often applied to nudibranchs, as well as to a paraphyletic set of other marine gastropods without obvious shells.

Distribution

This species occurs in the Arctic seas; (Greenland, Iceland, Spitsbergen, North Pacific (Bering Strait, Point Barrow, Alaska, British Columbia), the Western Atlantic (Cape Cod (Mass.) north to Halifax (Nova Scotia)) and the Eastern Atlantic and northern European waters (north coast of Norway).

Greenland is an autonomous constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for more than a millennium. The majority of its residents are Inuit, whose ancestors began migrating from the Canadian mainland in the 13th century, gradually settling across the island.

Iceland is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic, with a population of 348,580 and an area of 103,000 km² (40,000 sq mi), making it the most sparsely populated country in Europe. The capital and largest city is Reykjavík, with Reykjavík and the surrounding areas in the southwest of the country being home to over two-thirds of the population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically active. The interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and lava fields, mountains, and glaciers, and many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate, despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle. Its high latitude and marine influence keep summers chilly, with most of the archipelago having a tundra climate.

Spitsbergen largest island of the Svalbard archipelago

Spitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in northern Norway. Constituting the westernmost bulk of the archipelago, it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea, and the Greenland Sea. Spitsbergen covers an area of 37,673 km² (14,546 sq mi), making it the largest island in Norway and the 36th-largest in the world. The administrative centre is Longyearbyen. Other settlements, in addition to research outposts, are the Russian mining community of Barentsburg, the research community of Ny-Ålesund, and the mining outpost of Sveagruva. Spitsbergen was covered in 21,977 km² (8,485 sq mi) of ice in 1999, which was approximately 58.5% of the island's total area.

Description

The white, translucent, broad body of this species reaches a length between 25 and 50 mm, and ends in a thin, tapered tail. The cerata are swollen with a thin orange or pink digestive gland duct. There are opaque white markings at the tips of the cerata and on the outer parts of the rhinophores and oral tentacles. An orange color variation may occur, caused by a diet of anemones rather than ascidians. This was previously considered to be a distinct species, Coryphella stimpsoni.^[3] The maximum recorded length is 50 mm.

Cerata anatomical structures found in nudibranch sea slugs

Ceras, plural Cerata, are anatomical structures found externally in nudibranch sea slugs, especially in aeolid nudibranchs, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the clade Aeolidida. The singular of cerata is ceras, which comes from the Greek word "κέρας", meaning "horn", a reference to the shape of these structures.

Anemone is a genus of about 200 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, native to temperate zones. The genus is closely related to Pulsatilla and Hepatica; some botanists even include both of these genera within Anemone.

Ecology

These sea slugs can be found consuming the colonial tunicate Amaroucium constellatum Verrill, 1871 which is an unusual diet for an aeolid nudibranch. Juveniles have been found feeding on hydroids, especially Tubularia.^[4] The salmon aeolis, like other nudibranchs, is a simultaneous hermaphrodite with reciprocal mating and sperm storage. They lay their eggs in a long, twisted, gelatinous mass.

A tunicate is a marine invertebrate animal, a member of the subphylum Tunicata. It is part of the Chordata, a phylum which includes all animals with dorsal nerve cords and notochords. The subphylum was at one time called Urochordata, and the term urochordates is still sometimes used for these animals. They are the only chordates that have lost their myomeric segmentation, with the possible exception of the seriation of the gill slits.

Hydroids are a life stage for most animals of the class Hydrozoa, small predators related to jellyfish. Some hydroids such as the freshwater Hydra are solitary, with the polyp attached directly to the substrate. When these produce buds, they become detached and grow on as new individuals.

Tubularia is a genus of hydroids that appear to be furry pink tufts or balls at the end of long strings, thus causing them to be sometimes be called "pink-mouthed" or "pink-hearted" hydroids. Their average height is 40–60 mm and the diameter of the polyp and tentacles is 10mm. Tubularia indivisa and Ectopleura larynx can be difficult to distinguish and the two often grow together. In E. larynx the stems branch while in T. indivisa they are unbranched.

Related Research Articles

Flabellinopsis iodinea is a species of aeolid nudibranch, a very colorful sea slug. This is a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Flabellinidae.

The purple lady nudibranch, Paraflabellina funeka, is a species of aeolid nudibranch, and is a very colourful sea slug. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Trinchesia speciosa, common name the "candy nudibranch", is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Trinchesiidae.

Flabellina is a genus of sea slugs, specifically aeolid nudibranchs. These animals are marine gastropod molluscs in the family Flabellinidae.

Paracoryphella islandica is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Paracoryphellidae.

Coryphella is a genus of sea slugs, specifically aeolid nudibranchs, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Flabellinidae.

Coryphellina marcusorum, is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Edmundsella pedata is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Microchlamylla amabilis is a species of sea slug, an aolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Flabellinidae.

Flabellina bertschi is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Fjordia browni is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Flabellina engeli is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Orienthella fogata is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Flabellinidae.

<i>Coryphella verrucosa</i> species of mollusc

Coryphella verrucosa, is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Flabellinidae. It is found on either side of the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean.

Coryphellina rubrolineata is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine heterobranch mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

<i>Borealea nobilis</i> species of mollusc

Borealea nobilis is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine heterobranch mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Coryphella pallida is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine heterobranch mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Coryphellina poenicia is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine heterobranchia mollusc in the family Flabellinidae.

Apata pricei is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine heterobranch mollusc in the family Apataidae.

Catriona gymnota is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Trinchesiidae.

References

↑ Couthouy, Joseph Pitty. 1838. Descriptions of new species of Mollusca and shells, and remarks on several Polypi found in Massachusetts Bay. Boston Journal of Natural History 2(1):53-111, pls. 1-3.
1 2 Rosenberg, G. (2010). Flabellina salmonacea (Couthouy, 1838). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2011-01-17
↑ Shepard, A., 2006 (Mar 31) Sea Slug Forum : Color variation in Flabellina salmonacea; accessed : 17 January 2011
↑ Rudman, W.B., 2001 (June 18) Flabellina salmonacea (Cuthouy, 1838). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.