''Stylocheilus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

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 ...

s, specifically

sea hares The order Aplysiida, commonly known as sea hares (''Aplysia'' species and related genera), are medium-sized to very large opisthobranch gastropod molluscs with a soft internal shell made of protein. These are marine gastropod molluscs in the ...

, marine

opisthobranch Opisthobranchs () is a now informal name for a large and diverse group of specialized complex gastropods which used to be united in the subclass Opisthobranchia. That taxon is no longer considered to represent a monophyletic grouping. Euopistho ...

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 ...

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

s 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 ...

Aplysiidae Aplysiidae is the only family in the superfamily Aplysioidea, within the clade Anaspidea. These animals are commonly called sea hares because, unlike most sea slugs, they are often quite large, and when they are underwater, their rounded body sha ...

, the sea hares.Bazzicalupo, E.; Crocetta, F.; Gosliner, T. M.; Berteaux-Lecellier, V.; Camacho-García, Y. E.; Chandran, B. K. S.; Valdés, Á. (2020)
Molecular and morphological systematics of ''Bursatella leachii'' de Blainville, 1817 and ''Stylocheilus striatus'' Quoy & Gaimard, 1832 reveal cryptic diversity in pantropically distributed taxa (Mollusca : Gastropoda : Heterobranchia).
Invertebrate Systematics. 34: 535-568. According to some authors this genus belongs in the family Dolabriferidae.

Species

Species in the genus ''Stylocheilus'' include: * '' Stylocheilus polyomma'' (Mörch, 1863) * '' Stylocheilus rickettsi'' (MacFarland, 1966) * ''

Stylocheilus striatus ''Stylocheilus striatus'' is a species of sea hare found in the Indo-pacific region living from the intertidal zone to a depth of 30 metres. Common names include lined sea hare, blue ring sea hare and furry sea hare. Mature animals can reach size ...

'' Quoy & Gaimard, 1832 ** Distribution :

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

; intertidal, occurs up to 30 m depth ** Length : 65 mm ** Color : brownish, with blue spots; lined species, with dark longitudinal lines (as stated by its name ''striatus'') and small eyespots, providing excellent

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

. ** Description : Feeds on blue-green algae; gives off a purple ink when disturbed. ; Taxon inquirendum: * ''

Stylocheilus longicauda ''Stylocheilus longicauda'' is a species of gastropods belonging to the family Aplysiidae. The species is found in Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlan ...

'' Quoy &

Gaimard Joseph Paul Gaimard (31 January 1793 – 10 December 1858) was a French naval surgeon and naturalist. Biography Gaimard was born at Saint-Zacharie on January 31, 1793. He studied medicine at the naval medical school in Toulon, subsequent ...

, 1824 - Blue-ring Sea Hare, Lemon Sea Hare (used to be called ''Stylocheilus citrina'') ** Distribution : circumtropical,

Indo-West Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the s ...

. ** Color : bright yellow or green with bluish eyespots, no lines. ** Description : This is one of the most specialized sea hares; elongate body with a long "tail" (as stated by its name ''longicauda''), adapted for living on floating seaweed; feeds on Mermaid's Hair, blue-green

alga Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular microalgae, suc ...

e of species ''Lynghya majuscula''; at times, they are abundant, with several thousands crawling in the sand, traveling in chains ("snail trail") up to 10 m long ;Species brought into synonymy: * ''Stylocheilus citrinus'' (Rang, 1828) is a synonym of ''Stylocheilus longicauda'' (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) * ''Stylocheilus lineolatus'' Gould, 1852: synonym of ''Stylocheilus longicauda'' (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) * '' Stylocheilus quercinus'' Gould, 1852

References

* Rolán E., 2005. Malacological Fauna From The Cape Verde Archipelago. Part 1, Polyplacophora and Gastropoda

External links

*
Image of the Blue-ring Sea Hare

'Snail trail' of the Blue-ring Sea Hare

Aplysiidae Taxa named by Augustus Addison Gould {{Aplysiidae-stub