Mystery 'Slug' from Florida

April 15, 2003
From: Bryan Thompson


This slug was found in one of my holding tanks. This tank contains mainly stuff from Florida but does have other coral in it. It has no hard shell and is very quick. I would like to know the name and more importantly what it eats.
Thank you,
Bryan Thompson

bryan@blowfishaquatics.com

Thompson, B., 2003 (Apr 15) Mystery 'Slug' from Florida. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/9641

Dear Bryan,
The whitish thing in your photo is a shell, although only lightly calcified. The tentacles identify this as a caenogastropod snail, but as you give no indication of size its a bit hard to know if this is a juvenile or not. I have discussed this with my colleagues in Sydney and we wavered between a velutinid or a juvenile cowry. Jim Mclean at the Los Angeles County Museum is sure it is a juvenile cowry [Cypraeidae]. He notes "Lindsey Groves knows cowries well enough to say that a black mantle is known for the genus Luria, which includes L. isabella among others".

Concerning what it eats. I'm not a cowry expert but I suspect it is a sponge feeder. I am afraid I must be strong and not allow the Forum to venture far outside the field of opisthobranchs.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2003 (Apr 15). Comment on Mystery 'Slug' from Florida by Bryan Thompson. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/9641

Factsheet

Cowries or cypraeids

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