Dolabella auricularia, common name the "wedge sea hare", is a species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of large sea slug

Slug

Slug is a common name that is normally applied to any gastropod mollusc that lacks a shell, has a very reduced shell, or has a small internal shell...

, a marine

Marine (ocean)

Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...

 opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aplysiidae

Aplysiidae

The superfamily Aplysioidea is a superfamily of mostly rather large sea slugs, marine gastropod mollusks in the clade Aplysiomorpha within the informal group Opisthobranchia.This superfamily contains only one family, the Aplysiidae; the sea hares...

, the sea hares.

Description

Dolabella auricularia is a rather large species. It can reach a length of 40 cm. It can be recognized by a flattened disk on the posterior surface of the animal. This species can be found with soft pustules, leading to a rather knob-like appearance. It has a short, blunt head. Its body is covered with tubercles and skin flaps. The inner shell has a typical earlike form. It gives off purple ink when disturbed. The penis is unarmed.

Distribution

Dolabella auricularia can be found in the Indian Ocean

Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...

, Western and NW Pacific.

Habitat

This sea hare lives in areas that are sheltered from rough currents. They will often hide in seagrass

Seagrass

Seagrasses are flowering plants from one of four plant families , all in the order Alismatales , which grow in marine, fully saline environments.-Ecology:...

, sand and mud, feeding on algae. Intertidal rock pools are also a favoured place to live.

Human uses

Dolabella auricularia is sometimes used by keepers of large marine aquaria

Aquarium

An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...

, to keep algal growths in the tank down, because the sea hare feeds on them.