Paradoris from New Zealand

January 12, 2010
From: Nova Mieszkowska


Hi

Please can you tell me what species this is? I took it on the rocky intertidal at Timaru, on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. I have seen several individuals at shores on both islands so I am assuming that they are relatively common.

Locality: Timaru, on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, 44.3774 S, 171.2497 E., 10 January 2008, Intertidal rock. Length: ~ 2 inches. Photographer: N Mieszkowska.

Many thanks
Nova Mieszkowska

nova@mba.ac.uk

Mieszkowska, N., 2010 (Jan 12) Paradoris from New Zealand. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/23082

Dear Nova,

This is a nice find because it sorts out a taxonomic puzzle. I am sure your animal is a species of Paradoris. This genus was revised recently (Dayrat, 2006) and he considered that the only species known from New Zealand, Paradoris leuca Miller, 1995 was the same as Paradoris dubia which is a fairly common species in southern Australia. However most specimens of P. dubia, which I am familiar with, have distinctive brownish glands on the mantle, and these brown patches have never been recorded from the few known New Zealand specimens. So until now I have tentatively left P. leuca as a good species [see also message #18265]. However your animal clearly shows the brown patches, so unless both species occur in New Zealand I am pretty sure we should be calling this New Zealand animal Paradoris dubia.

  • Dayrat, B. (2006) A taxonomic revision of Paradoris sea slugs (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Nudibranchia, Doridina). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 147 (2): 125-238.
  • Miller, M. C. (1995) New species of the dorid nudibranch genus Paradoris Bergh, 1884 (Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia). Journal of Natural History 29: 901-908.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2010 (Jan 12). Comment on Paradoris from New Zealand by Nova Mieszkowska. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/23082

Factsheet

Paradoris dubia

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