''Goniobranchus conchyliatus'' 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 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
Nudibranchs () are a group of soft-bodied marine gastropod molluscs, belonging to the order Nudibranchia, that shed their shells after their larval stage. They are noted for their often extraordinary colours and striking forms, and they have b ...
, 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
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.� ...
.
[Bouchet, P. (2012)]
''Goniobranchus conchyliatus''.
Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2012-05-02
Distribution
This species was described from
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
. It is widespread in the Indian Ocean and is similar in colouration to ''
Goniobranchus geometricus
''Goniobranchus geometricus'' is a species of colourful sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusc in the family Chromodorididae.Bouchet, P. (2012)''Goniobranchus geometricus''.Accessed through: World Register of Mar ...
'' from the West Pacific Ocean. Both species have been reported from
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
.
[Gosliner, T.M., Behrens, D.W. & Valdés, Á. (2008) ''Indo-Pacific Nudibranchs and seaslugs. A field guide to the world's most diverse fauna''. Sea Challengers Natural History Books, Washington, 426 pp. page(s): 217]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5581882
Chromodorididae
Gastropods described in 1984