Migration inshore of Aplysia punctata

June 11, 2003
From: Dr. Stephen Hoskins

Dear Bill,
Ten days ago I was surveying the rocky shores of Alderney in the Channel Islands. The sea temperature averaged at 11 degrees Celsius and there was an abundance of the species of red and green algae favoured by Aplysia punctata, yet no animals were found.

I'm curious to know which factors determine the inshore migration of these animals since in previous years I have found both juveniles and adults along the English Channel coastline under similar environmental conditions. At one point I speculated that the animals followed algal growth patterns moving from the sublittoral zone shorewards; now I'm tempted to ask whether movement is physiologically controlled in response to other environmental factors, or is it simply random?

I'd very much appreciate your views together with other readers of this site.
Many thanks and best wishes.
Stephen.

SRH@4thenet.co.uk

Dear Stephen,
As I discussed in your message last year, the real question is whether they migrate at all. If you follow some of the conversations and links on the Mass Mortality Page you will see that there has been quite a lot of study on this. One relevant paper is Michael C. Miller's who studied this topic on the Isle of Man in the 1950s.

•Miller, M.C. (1962) Annual cycles of some Manx nudibranchs, with a discussion of the problem of migration. Journal of Animal Ecology, 31: 545-569.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2003 (Jun 11). Comment on Migration inshore of Aplysia punctata by Dr. Stephen Hoskins. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/10178

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