Dendronotus sp.

Image courtesy of Maureen Dengah
Photo taken Ambon. Indonesia
Olympus TG-4 with internal flash, no external strobe, in Olympus housing

Dendronotus sp. photographed by Maureen Dengah
Ambon, Indonesia

Dendronotus sp. (undescribed) Members of the family Dendronotidae Allman, 1845 and represented by very few species in tropical waters but to the contrary are incredibly diverse in their morphology. This group is far more populous in temperate cold waters. Maureen Dengah's specimen shown here is not a perfect match for any of the known species from this region, but is most closely resembles D. regius Pola & Stout, 2008, due to the white body with dark brown marks and similar color on the tips of the "cerata", rhinophores and frontal veil. One contradiction is the lack of red color of the rhinophoral lamellae. The real kicker however, setting this species apart, is the surface of the dorsum, which is covered with low, bifurcating papillae, absent in D. regius . In fact I am not aware of any species of dendronotid having ramified papillae on its body. Well it looks like Marta and company have another project on their hands. Too bad it's from Indonesia, where we cannot collect. Good show Maureen! References: Pola M. & Stout C.C. (2008). Description of the first two tropical Indo-Pacific species of Dendronotus (Gastropoda: Nudibranchia) with new data of the poorly known species Dendronotus gracilis Baba, 1949. Zootaxa, 1960: 45-66

WEBMASTER'S NOTES : The Webmaster would like to thank Dr. Eli Amador of Palos Verdes, California for intiating this project! Eli's assistance was invaluable! After reading the online reviews of the Olympus TG-4 and seeing Maureen's images, I began to ask myself why am I lugging around a heavy Camcorder when the TG-4 or 3 could do the same job but with less logistical headaches! A consideration to ponder given the entry level price to mirrorless cameras! You can get into a TG-4 and housing for under $1k US!

Maureen Dengah is a diver and building contractor who lives in Bitung on the Lembeh Strait in Sulawesi. She learned to dive while Operational Manager, at Lembeh Hills Dabirahe Resort. Her dive instructor was well known Nuswanto Lobbu who is presently manager of the Maluku Dive Resort at Ambon. She photographed this Dendronotus while diving in Ambon this past September. Send Maureen mail at maureendive76@gmail.com

From left to right, Terry Gosliner, Angel Valdes, Dave Behrens La Jolla, Calif. Send Dave email at davidwbehrens@gmail.com

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