OKINAWAN
OPISTHOBRANCH OF THE WEEK
Thorunna furtiva Bergh, 1878 (15mm)
Opisthobranch of the Week Data
Taxonomy:
- Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
- Suborder: Doridina
- Family: Chromodorididae
Frequency on Okinawa:
Collection Data:
- Individual Collection No: RFB #2983
- Location: Horseshoe Cliffs, Okinawa (26o30.0'N, 127o50.9'E)
- Date: 18 May, 1992 [only a single specimen]
- Depth: Intertidal [only a single specimen]
- Water temperature at collection depth: Not recorded
- Size: TL 15mm [only a single specimen]
- Specimen deposited: California Academy of Sciences
[brackets indicate range for all Okinawa-collected specimens of the species]
Species Account:
Thorunna furtiva is considered to be very rare on Okinawa as I have seen and collected only a solitary individual. The specimen was collected from the walls of a small (1m3) rocky
tide pool during a near-minus spring tide daytime "reef walk".
The orange line along the anterior and posterior midline of the rhinophore clubs and the line along the outer edge of the gills are characteristic of the species (Rudman, 2000).
Thorunna furtiva is one of six described species of Thorunna known from Okinawan waters. The six species are:
Literature Cited:
Page Date: 7 Aug '00
Page Modification Date: 23 Feb '04
Digitally manipulated photo
Copyright © 2004 Robert F. Bolland
