''Chromodoris westraliensis'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of very colourful

sea slug Sea slug is a common name for some Marine biology, marine invertebrates with varying levels of resemblance to terrestrial Slug, slugs. Most creatures known as sea slugs are gastropods, i.e. they are Sea snail, sea snails (marine gastropod moll ...

, a dorid nudibranch, a marine

gastropod Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and fro ...

mollusc Mollusca is a phylum of protostome, protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant taxon, extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Chromodorididae Chromodorididae, or chromodorids, are a taxonomic family of colourful sea slugs; dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Doridoidea. “Chromodorid nudibranchs are among the most gorgeously coloured of all animals.� ...

.Caballer, M. (2011)
''Chromodoris westraliensis'' (O'Donoghue, 1924).
Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2011-01-13

Distribution

This species of nudibranch occurs in coastal regions of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, from the

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia Queensland * Kimberley, Queensland, a coastal locality in the Shire of Douglas South Australia * County of Kimberley, a cadastral unit in South Australia Ta ...

region in the north of the state, to its southern occurrence near Esperance. It is the most abundant nudibranch of the

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

region.

Description

The length of this animal is up to 65 millimetres. A mantle covers the upper parts of the animal and extends to form a skirt at the sides. The colouring is two (or one) bright blue patches on a black background, with an orange outline. This aposematic coloration advertises its toxicity to would-be predators. Two sensory organs, tentacle shaped

rhinophore A rhinophore is one of a pair of Chemoreceptor, chemosensory club-shaped, rod-shaped or ear-like structures which are the most prominent part of the external head anatomy in sea slugs, Marine (ocean), marine gastropod opisthobranch mollusks suc ...

s, are orange, and are located at the upper surface of the head. The gills, clustered and plumose, are also orange and arranged near the anus.Rudman, W.B., 1998 (November 19
''Chromodoris westraliensis'' (O'Donoghue, 1924).
n/nowiki> Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.

Ecology

These nudibranchs feed on

sponge Sponges or sea sponges are primarily marine invertebrates of the animal phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), a basal clade and a sister taxon of the diploblasts. They are sessile filter feeders that are bound to the seabed, and a ...

s, usually a single species, storing the toxins the sponge contains, in order to deter their own potential predators. This species occurs in shallow waters on partially exposed reefs and at depths up to 18 metres.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5113875 Chromodorididae Fauna of Western Australia Gastropods described in 1924