Spurilla salaamica
Rudman, 1982
Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: AEOLIDINA
Family: Aeolidiidae
DISTRIBUTION
Known from Tanzania, east Africa, and Japan.
PHOTO
All specimens collected on intertidal piles supporting the sewer pipe, North Reef, Harbour entrance, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Upper Right; Lower Left: AM C124694, 12mm long alive, 8 May 1974, paratype. Lower Right: AM C124693, 10mm long alive, 16 Aug. 1973, paratype.
Rhinophores with relatively long scattered papillae on posterior side. The cerata are long and cylindrical, not as flattened as Spurilla major. The body and foot are translucent white with pinkish-orange viscera showing thrugh the body wall. There is a pigmented white patch on the head, the white being most intense around the edge, and a diamond-shaped whitish patch behind the rhinophores. In some specimens there are scattered white patches down the dorsal surface of the body. No sign of zooxanthellae in digestive gland. Grows to about 20mm in length. Similar in shape and colour to Spurilla chromosoma but differs in ceratal arrangement and shape of the rhinophores, papillate in S. salaamica, lamellate in S. chromosoma.
Reference:
• Rudman, W. B. (1982). The taxonomy and biology of further aeolidacean and arminacean nudibranch molluscs with symbiotic zooxanthellae. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 74(2): 147-196.
Rudman, W.B., 2002 (May 27) Spurilla salaamica Rudman, 1982. [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/spursala
Related messages
Spurilla salaamica from South Korea
June 11, 2005
From: Dong Bum Koh
Dear Bill,
Here are photos of what I think is Spurilla salaamica Rudman,1982 from South Korea.
Locality: Hwa Soon. Jeju island, South Korea. Depth: 6 m. Length: About 10 mm. 17 Nov. 2004. Sandy bottom. Photographer: Byung Ro Yun
Best regards,
Dong Bum Koh
drkoh@seasee.co.kr
Dear Koh,
It certainly seems that this species has a wide Indo-West Pacific distribution. Like Tanzanian animals there seems to be no sign of branching digestive gland ducts in the body wall.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman
Spurilla salaamica from Japan
May 30, 2002
From: Jun Imamoto
Dear Bill,
We discovered the pleasures of tide pools when I went to look for sea slugs on the beach near the my house. (By car, at the time of about 40 minutes.) Various sea slugs were there. Then, we met with a difficult question. Are these sea slugs Berghia japonica? These were discovered under stones, near each other.
Please, give me advice.
Date: 6 Oct 2001
Place: Manazuru, Sagami Bay, Japan. Depth: 0.3m (Intertidal).
Upper Right: about 20-23mm long.
Lower Left: about 8-9mm long.
Lower Right: about 6-7mm long.
Water temperature: 26C degrees.
Best Regards,
Jun Imamoto
imamoto@wips.co.jp
Dear Jun,
This is an interesting find. I am sure that at least two of the animals are the same as a species I found in East Africa and named Spurilla salaamica. I am not so sure of the photo at Lower Right. It looks like a species of Favorinus to me but the papillate rhinophores are unusual. It differs from the animals in your other two photos in both the shape and arrangement of the cerata and the arrangement of the papillae on the rhinophores. In this animal the papillae are all over the rhinophore club while in Spurilla salaamica they are only found on the posterior half of the club.
Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.
Spurilla salaamica from Tanzania
May 30, 2002
From: Bill Rudman
While identifying Jun Imamoto's photos of this species from Japan I realised I had not posted photos from Tanzania. Spurilla salaamica was always found intertidally on the piles supporting the sewer pipe, on the north side of the Harbour entrance, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
PHOTOS: Upper Right; Lower Left: AM C124694, 12mm long alive, 8 May 1974, paratype. Lower Right: AM C124693, 10mm long alive, 16 Aug. 1973, paratype. Photos: Bill Rudman
Bill Rudman
