Risbecia imperialis & R. godeffroyana

January 10, 2001
From: Bill Rudman

Risbecia imperialis from Hawaii and Risbecia godeffroyana, with a more widespread distribution in the Western Pacific are two very similarly coloured species of chromodorid. There is little anatomical information available on R. imperialis. However when I was preparing a page for these species on the Forum I felt that they were probably just geographical colour forms of one widely distributed species. To stimulate discussion on the Forum I placed both 'species' on the R. imperialis page.

Since I can't substantiate this 'feeling' and because it is causing confusion amongst visitors to the Forum I have, as promised recently, now separated them as two species.
However this does mean we should stop thinking about the relationships of these 'species' to each other, so please don't stop looking for R. imperialis-like animals in places other than Hawaii.
Bill Rudman.

Rudman, W.B., 2001 (Jan 10) Risbecia imperialis & R. godeffroyana. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/3504

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