Tambja morosa
Encyclopedia
Tambja morosa, also known as Tambja kushimotoensis, is a species of sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a shell-less marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the subfamily Nembrothinae within the family Polyceridae
, itself belonging to the clade Orthogastropoda within the clade Nudipleura.
It is also sometimes placed in the family Gymnodorididae
.
distribution, and is found in Philippines
, Indonesia
, Thailand
, Myanmar
, Malaysia, New Zealand
, Solomon Islands
, Taiwan
, Australia
, French Polynesia
and Fiji
.
and northern New Zealand, this species is normally black with blue markings. The skin of this slug is wrinkled, and appears nearly black underwater. It has approximately five round, blue spots on its back, a blue band around its head, and a bright blue margin.
Polyceridae
Polyceridae is a taxonomic family of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod mollusks within the Superfamily Polyceroidea.- Taxonomy :...
, itself belonging to the clade Orthogastropoda within the clade Nudipleura.
It is also sometimes placed in the family Gymnodorididae
Gymnodorididae
Gymnodorididae is a taxonomic family of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, gastropod molluscs in the superfamily Polyceroidea.This family has no subfamilies.-Genera:Genera in the family Gymnodorididae include:...
.
Distribution
This species has a primarily Indo-PacificIndo-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...
distribution, and is found in Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
, Malaysia, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, French Polynesia
French Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
and Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
.
Description
This large species of Tambja grows to approximately 70-75 mm in length. Although dark green specimens are found in the cooler waters of New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
and northern New Zealand, this species is normally black with blue markings. The skin of this slug is wrinkled, and appears nearly black underwater. It has approximately five round, blue spots on its back, a blue band around its head, and a bright blue margin.
Further reading
- Baba, K. (1987) Two new green colored species of Tambja from Japan (Nudibranchia: Polyceridae). Venus, The Japanese Journal of Malacology, 46(1): 13-18.
- Marshall, J.G. & Willan, R.C. (1999) Nudibranchs of Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef.