UNKNOWN OKINAWAN
OPISTHOBRANCH
Melibe sp. 1 (8mm)
Unknown Okinawan Opisthobranch Data
Taxonomy:
- Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
- Suborder: Dendronotina
- Family: Tethyidae
Frequency on Okinawa:
- Common, but only at a single site, Horseshoe Cliffs
Collection Data:
- Individual Collection No: RFB #2552-H
- Location: Horseshoe Cliffs (26o30.0'N, 127o50.9'E)
- Date: 18 May, 1991 [1991: May(3 lots),Jun(4 lots),Jul(3 lots),Aug(1 lot); 1992:
Mar(1 lot),May(1 lot),Jul(1 lot)]
- Depth: 10ft (3.0m) [5ft(3 lots),10ft(10 lots), 15ft(1 lot)]
- Size: TL 8mm [7,8,8,8,8,9,9,10,10,10,11,13mm + 2 lots w/ unmeasured
individuals]
- Water temperature at collection depth: Unrecorded
- Specimen deposited: California Academy of Sciences
[brackets indicate range for all Okinawa-collected specimens of the species]
Species Account:
Melibe sp. 1 is considered to be common on Okinawa, but at only a single locality: Horseshoe Cliffs. I've collected 14 lots of these little animals between 18 May, 1991 & 13 July, 1992, all from Horseshoe Cliffs. The lot contents varied between 1 and 28 individuals. Twelve measured individuals ranged from 7-13mm, having a mean size of 9mm.
These little dendronotaceans were initially found by collecting a few chunks of dead reef-forming corals which had dense growths of a brown alga, Acanthophora sp., on the upper surface. The animals were discovered later in the lab crawling on the walls of a sorting pan. It was subsequently discovered that most of the above-mentioned dead coral was replete with these small animals.
Copyright © 1999 Robert F. Bolland
Digitally manipulated photo
