A sea slug? from California

March 3, 2006
From: Mila Zinkova

Dear, Bill,
I took the pictures in California (tidepools)
Is this a sea slug? (orange one) I do not recall I've ever seen a sea slug that has small particales of sand and shells on its body like this one does.
The third picture is a different sea slug. It seemed to me that it was afraid of a hermit crab. What is this sea slug and was it really afraid of a hermit crab?

Locality: Half Moon Bay, tide pools, California, US, Pacific, 24 February 2006, Low tide zone. Length: .5 inches. Photographer: Mila Zinkova.

Thank you.
Mila.

georgekaskanlian@comcast.COM

Zinkova, M., 2006 (Mar 3) A sea slug? from California. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/15960

Dear Mila,
Thanks for sending us these photos.  First the orange critter is often confused with dorid nudibranchs, but is not even a mollusc.  This animal is the creeping sea cucumber, Psolidium bidiscum.  Its gill looks identical to the dorsally situated gill of a dorid nudibranch.

Your other photos are of the aeolid, Phidiana hiltoni.  It was previously named Phidiana pugnax, to draw attention to its pugnacious behavior  I am sure that is what is being demonstated here as I suspect your specimen is attempting to scare off the potentional hermit crab predator.

Best wishes,
Dave Behrens

Behrens, D.W., 2006 (Mar 3). Comment on A sea slug? from California by Mila Zinkova. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/15960

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