Interesting color variant

[divinman]

I 'think' it's a hermissenda but its missing the orange patch between the rhino's. Thoughts.

Pretty little thing for sure

[Kevin Lee]

Hey Terry,
Thanks for posting your possible Hermie variant. It's difficult to make out the morphology of the rhinophores in your image. Can you show us a close up of the rhinophore structure? H. crassicornis has annulate rhinos; yours appear verrucose. This guy may be the slug Dave thinks is Flabellina cooperi, but I'm uncertain as the description and photo (pg. 105) doesn't really accord with what we've been seeing at LJS*. At least in your animal, there appears to be a tell-tale white line running down the dorsum center, which would be characteristic of cooperi, according to "Eastern Pacific Nudibranchs". Other fotos I've seen of this animal seem like a cross between a Stearn's and Price's Aeolid. Hopefully, Dave can help us sort this out on his return from the Great Wall.
Cheers, k;-)

*Ref: http://www.diverkevin.com/North-America ... 8382_S5DDn

[divinman]

I agree about the rhino's. I sent the image to Brenna Green up in Santa Cruz. She was down last year and collected this species (she has a license to) and examination under the microscope shows it to indeed be Cooperi. Thanks Kev.

[seekncritters]

Awesome find, guys! Woohoo!

[seekncritters]

OMG!!! Terry!!! Check this out! Totally found your post from 2008 by accident today when searching old info on the solitary hydroids that the Cumanotus feeds on... I THINK THERE'S A F. COOPERI IN ONE OF YOUR 2008 PHOTOS (see the last post on the forum topic in this link)!!!

http://www.ladiving.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=310

-Dana

[seekncritters]

Terry's photo from 2008 (referenced above):