Phyllidia ocellata 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 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 dorid nudibranch

Nudibranch

A nudibranch is a member of what is now a taxonomic clade, and what was previously a suborder, of soft-bodied, marine gastropod mollusks which shed their shell after their larval stage. They are noted for their often extraordinary colors and striking forms...

, a shell-less 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...

 gastropod mollusk in the family Phyllidiidae

Phyllidiidae

Phyllidiidae is a family of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Phyllidioidea.This family is within the clade Euctenidiacea .-Distribution:...

.

Distribution

This species is widely distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific

Indo-Pacific

The Indo-Pacific is a biogeographic region of the Earth's seas, comprising the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the seas connecting the two in the general area of Indonesia...

 Ocean the Red Sea

Red Sea

The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...

.

Description

This animal can measure up to 60 mm in length. There is some variation in this species but most commonly this nudibranch has a yellow body with a dorsum covered in yellow or white tubercules. There are varying patterns on its upper body, typically between four to ten black rings edged with white surround the tubercules. Some specimens found in southern Thailand have dorsum

Dorsum (biology)

In anatomy, the dorsum is the upper side of animals that typically run, fly, or swim in a horizontal position, and the back side of animals that walk upright. In vertebrates the dorsum contains the backbone. The term dorsal refers to anatomical structures that are either situated toward or grow...

s with a mainly black background and yellow tubercles, but very little or no white colour.

Ecology

Like many nudibranchs, Phyllidia ocellata feeds on sponges. They have been observed consuming orange sponges from the Order Axinellida

Further reading

• Brunckhorst, D.J. 1993. The systematics and phylogeny of Phyllidiid Nudibranchs (Doridoidea). Records of the Australian Museum, Supplement 16: 1-107.

External links

• Phyllidia ocellata at nudipixel
• http://slugsite.us/bow/nudiwk95.html