Parasite or hitchhiker? on Melibe

January 18, 2006
From: Jan Kocian


Hi Bill,
I came across a swimming Melibe leonina harboring this little critter, I think it is just an accidental traveler since I did not see any other slugs in the group with same.

Locality: Whidbey Island, Puget Sound, WAshington, USA. Nth-eastern Pacific Ocean. Depth: 15 feet. Length: 40 mm. 09 November 2005. Eel grass area. Photographer: Jan Kocian

Jan

honkoc@hotmail.com

Kocian J., 2006 (Jan 18) Parasite or hitchhiker? on Melibe. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/15247

Dear Jan,
I passed this on to a crustacean expert, who by chance was in the USA for a couple of months and has only recently returned. He tends to think your animal is an isopod crustacean, but doesn't recognise a family grouping from the photos. He would need a specimen to identify it but as I told him, the specimen cruised past some time ago.  I tend to agree with your suggestion that this is not a regular association. Considering Melibe's partiality for small crustacea, I think it may have a death wish
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2006 (Jan 18). Comment on Parasite or hitchhiker? on Melibe by Jan Kocian. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/15247

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