''Phyllidiopsis loricata'' is a species of sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a shell-less

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

gastropod The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...

mollusk in the family Phyllidiidae.

Distribution

This species was described from Tahiti. It has been reported from the Great Barrier Reef, Timor Sea (northern Australia), Guam, the Marshall Islands and Enewetok Atoll.Rudman, W.B., 1999 (August 1
''Phyllidiopsis loricata'' (Bergh, 1873).
n/nowiki> Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Specimens from

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

in the Indian Ocean may be a different species. Phyllidiopsis loricata

Description

This nudibranch has a white dorsum with rounded black spots in a single row along both sides of the body, with a spot at the front, in front of the white rhinophores, and a similar spot at the back of the mantle. It is a moderately large Phyllidiid, growing to about 40 mm in length. It is similar to ''

Phyllidia scottjohnsoni ''Phyllidia scottjohnsoni'' is a species of sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusk in the family Phyllidiidae. Distribution This species was described from the Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, N� ...

'' but that species has black spots along the midline of the back. It is possible that there are several undescribed species with similar coloration.

Diet

This species feeds on a white sponge.Pittman, C. & Fiene, P. (2016)
''Phyllidiopsis loricata''
Sea Slugs of Hawaii.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q14094843 Phyllidiidae Gastropods described in 1873