Chelidonura livida from Mayotte, Indian Ocean

January 16, 2009
From: Sylvain Le Bris


Dear Bill,

Please confirm that this is Chelidonura livida.

This will be the first record from this location in your Forum.

Locality: Nurserie, 8 m, Mayotte, Indian Ocean, 04 December 2008. Length: 2 cm. Photographer: Sylvain Le Bris.

Best regards
Sylvain Le Bris

lebris.sylvain@gmail.com

Le Bris, S., 2009 (Jan 16) Chelidonura livida from Mayotte, Indian Ocean. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22110

Dear Sylvain,

Yes this is C. livida. Athough politically distinct from Madagascar I would say that in terms of geography and biogeography, Mayotte is very close. Interestingly, the only other records we have on the Forum of animals with fairly distinct blue rings like your animals are in two messages from Madagascar [#3574, #11749]. In the northern part of this species' range the pattern consists of blue spots. At present we don't have a large sample of observations but from those we have, it looks a though there may be a geographic cline in colour pattern from spots to rings from north to south in the Indian Ocean, but as the only other records we have are from the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf we still have a vast area in between to fill in.

Your second photo showing an animal egg laying is interesting. I have included a close-up alongside where you can see the spiralling coils of the egg string being arranged before the 'head' is withdrawn and the eggs sealed in a spherical bubble 

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2009 (Jan 16). Comment on Chelidonura livida from Mayotte, Indian Ocean by Sylvain Le Bris. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22110

Factsheet

Chelidonura livida

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