Glossodoris sp.

Photo courtesy of Steve Drogin
Irian Jaya, Indonesia

Glossodoris sp. (unidentified)

Well here we go again, another one of those tricky glossodorids that doesn’t look like anyone, but looks like everyone. What can I say? At least we know it lays a nice yellow vertical egg ribbon, and we can surmise it feeds on the blue grey sponge in the photo.

Concerning its identification, we can eliminate all the flat bodied forms like Glossodoris averni and G. cruenta. Because of its tall body, with wide hyponotum, and its body color, it is very similar to Glossodoris hikuerensis and G. cincta, but the lines along the edge of the mantle are quite different. In this species we see a thin black edge, followed by a thin white line to each side, then an area of fading pink. In G. hikuerensis the triple stripes begin with a thin brownish line, then a white band followed by a wide black band and in G. cincta , there is also a triple colored line - blue-white, at the outer edge, then black, then yellow.

Scrolling through the fifteen unidentified species Bill Rudman’s Forum , I don’t see a match there either. Hey Bill, we have another new one for you. If anyone can shed some light on this species, or has seen it yourself, please e-mail Webmaster Mike. I’m sure he’ll let me know. Happy Branching.

Webmaster's Notes: What a tremendous picture in all respects! The manner in which the photograph was taken embodies many of the recommedations made by veteran San Diego U/W Photographer Tracy Clark in a talk given before the San Diego Underwater Photographic Society a couple of months ago regarding techniques to take better nudibranch pictures. Hey, who says nudibranch pics can't be an art form? As an added bonus, the picture also tells us a little bit about the biology of the animal. As Dave noted, the sponge it is on is probably also a food source. And of course the egg mass lends insight into it's reproductive mechanisms. Great pic Steve!

Steve is a very active 65 year old amateur Diver/Photographer who spends full time traveling and diving the globe. He lives in La Jolla, California and is a member of the San Diego Underwater Photographic Society. Photographic credits include an article on the sunken fleet of Bikini Atoll in Sports Divers Journal(Issue 16) . Also his photos have also been featured during Discovery Channel's Shark Week promotions.

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
March 2005

Ali Hermosillo and Dave Behrens Author: Pacific Coast Nudibranchs Co-Author Coral Reef Animals of the Indo Pacific Proprietor of Sea Challengers Natural History Books Send Dave mail at dave@seachallengers.com

© The Slug Site, Michael D. Miller 2005. All Rights Reserved.

---