Re: Sea Hare sites in Australia/New Zealand

April 20, 1998
From: Richard Willan

Dear Bill,

This message is in reply to P.M. Johnson's request for information on the availability of sea hares (particularly Aplysia spp.) in Australia and New Zealand in August and September. Both the localities I mention below are the sites of marine research stations.

Assuming they want 40+ animals to study, I would recommend Heron Island in the southern section of the Great Barrier Reef because he would be guaranteed to collect that number of adult Aplysia dactylomela at the reef crest at that time of year. Numbers do go up and down from year to year, but there is never none. The student could collect Dolabella auricularia on Heron Reef too.

I would not recommend Leigh, north of Auckland, because densities are plunging very rapidly towards zero at that time of year (in 1976 I found no animals between August and December) because of storm-related mortality, low seawater temperatures and dwindling algal food.

Cheers,

Richard Willan

richard.willan@nt.gov.au

Willan, R., 1998 (Apr 20) Re: Sea Hare sites in Australia/New Zealand. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/137

Factsheet

Collecting sites in Australasia

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