Phidiana bourailli
(Risbec, 1928)
Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: AEOLIDINA
Family: Glaucidae
DISTRIBUTION
Indo West-Pacific
PHOTO
North Reef (sewer pipe), entrance to harbour, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Jan. 1978. 15mm long alive. 4 animals on hydroids Salacia tetracythara and Thyroscyphus fruticosus sensu Millard, 1975. Photo: Bill Rudman. Drawing showing ceratal arrangement [from Rudman, 1980, Fig 3b].
Body shape typical for genus, elongate and farly high, with a prominent pericardial hump. Anterior edge of the foot is extended pointed foot corners. The rhinophores are chracteristic for the species with evenly spaced rings or 'brackets' which each have a notch in the posterior midline. There can be up to 5 brackets in larger specimens. The cerata are short and arranged in orderly clusters, or groups, of rows. The body is translucent white with opaque white speckling and patches on the head and dorsum. On the head there are also orange streaks and spots, in some cases forming a pair of broken orange lines from the front of the head to the base of the rhinophores. Similar ornage marks appear on the dorsum between the cerata and on the sides of the body. The ceratal wall is translucent clear with some white speckling and black patches and spots mainly concentrated in the lower half. The digestive gland duct and contents is usually a light brown colour.
It has similarities to Phidiana anulifera, P. semidecora.
References:
• Rudman, W.B. (1980) Aeolid opisthobranch molluscs (Glaucidae) from the Indian Ocean and the south-west Pacific. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 68: 139-172.
Rudman, W.B., 2002 (September 5) Phidiana bourailli (Risbec, 1928). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/phidbour
Related messages
Phidiana bourailli from sthn Queensland
May 8, 2009
From: Gary Cobb
Concerning message #22358:
Hi Bill and everyone!
Here is a record of Phidiana bourailli from sthn Queensland. All animals are found from the Sunshine Coast's intertidal areas. The three photos I have here show variations in its red lines. One is very strong and one is very broken.
Locality: Sunshine Coast, Caloundra to Noosa, Queensland, Australia, Pacific Ocean, 03 November 2008, Intertidal (10 cm). Length: 10 - 18 mm. Photographer: Gary Cobb.
Cheers
Gary Cobb
gary@nudibranch.com.au
Cobb, G.C., 2009 (May 8) Phidiana bourailli from sthn Queensland. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22408
Dear Gary,
Thanks for this gradation of colour patterns. It certainly supports my earlier comments [message #22326] that Phidiana semidecora, Phidiana anulifera and Phidiana bourailli could well be colour forms of one species.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Re: Phidiana bourailli from nthn Mariana Islands
April 2, 2009
From: Yuji Fujie
Concerning message #7845:
Dear Dr.Bill,
We thought this animal was Phidiana bourailli. Please tell us your opinion.
The largest we have seen was 8 mm in length.
Locality: LauLau Beach, 7 m, Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, Pacific Ocean, 14 March 2009, under the dead coral. Length: 4 mm. Photographer: Ryoji Tamaki.
Best regards,
Yuji
scuba.element@gmail.com
Yuji Fujie, 2009 (Apr 2) Re: Phidiana bourailli from nthn Mariana Islands. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/22358
Dear Yuji,
Yes this looks like Phidiana bourailli (Risbec, 1928), but as I say on the Fact Sheet, it is possible that it and Phidiana semidecora (Pease, 1860), and P. anulifera (Baba, 1949) are colour forms of one species.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Phidiana bourailli from Heron Island
September 19, 2002
From: Julie Marshall
Dear Bill,
Attached are a couple of photos of Phidiana bourailli from Heron Island [Great Barrier Reef, Qld, Australia]. Like the photos of animals from the Marshall Islands that Scott sent you the main colour of the cerata is white although the base of each cerata is black. Both animals were 10 mm and were found in November 1999 and March 2001 respectively. I always find this species under dead coral slabs at the reef crest.
Best wishes,
Julie Marshall
juliemarshall@netspace.net.au
Thanks Julie,
I have added a close-up to show the very characteristic ornamentation on the rhinophores.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Phidiana bourailli from Marshall Ids
September 6, 2002
From: Scott Johnson
Hi Bill,
Here are three views of Phidiana bourailli from the Marshall Islands. It was a relatively common species under dead coral rocks at depths of 2-5 meters in the lagoon of Enewetak Atoll. These animals were all less than 10mm in stretched-out length. Seems to be related to Phidiana anulifera and P. semidecora.
Scott.
johnson@kmr.ll.mit.edu
Thanks Scott,
There seem to be a group of similarly coloured species. It is interesting to see how white pigmentation, rather than black, dominates the ceratal colour in your animals. In the animals I found in Tanzania it was the reverse.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
