Platydoris pulchra from Zanzibar

May 21, 2009
From: Bill Rudman


 

Vie Panyarachun's message [#22283] made me realise that all the photos at present on the Forum of Platydoris pulchraare rather different in colour from Eliot's original descripton from East Africa. In fact one animal [message #18679] may be Platydoris ellioti rather than P. pulchra. I am also posting a photo of P. ellioti from Tanzania [message #22490]

Locality: Fumba, Zanzibar, Tanzania. under rocks on reef flat. 2 specimens 50 mm and 45 mm long alive. 6 August 1971. Photo: Bill Rudman.

They were photographed in rather primitive conditions - which is my excuse for the out of focus bits - but they show the basic elements of the colour pattern as described by Eliot - reddish brown background colour with darker blotches, and bluish blotches around the mantle edge. In my field notes I record that the underside of the mantle is a bright yellow orange with red brown blotches around the edge and finer stippling over the rest of the mantle skirt.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.

Rudman, W.B., 2009 (May 21) Platydoris pulchra from Zanzibar. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22489

Factsheet

Platydoris pulchra

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