Baeolidia salaamica (Rudman, 1982)

Mehrotra, Rahul, A. Caballer Gutierrez, Manuel, M. Scott, Chad, Arnold, Spencer, Monchanin, Coline, Viyakarn, Voranop & Chavanich, Suchana, 2021, An updated inventory of sea slugs from Koh Tao, Thailand, with notes on their ecology and a dramatic biodiversity increase for Thai waters, ZooKeys 1042, pp. 73-188 : 73

* Baeolidia salaamica (Rudman, 1982) Figure 17C

Material examined.

One specimen 10 mm, CA.

Ecology.

Among corals and rubble in coral reef habitats. Depth 6-10 m.

Distribution.

Across the Indo-Pacific including Tanzania ( Rudman 1982), Japan ( Ono 2004), Korea ( Koh 2006), Hawaii ( Carmona et al. 2014a), Philippines, and Papua New Guinea ( Gosliner et al. 2008). Here representing a first record for Thai waters.

Remarks.

Rhinophores with numerous small white knobs leading to white apices, a faint white ring visible on the head, anterior to the rhinophores. Foot white and wide. Oral tentacles basally translucent with white tips, often held curled closer to the head (Fig. 17C ) but longer than rhinophores when extended. Cerata moderately long, brown with white speckles with very distinctive white cnidosacs. A similar brown colour (though often more orange) is the main colouration of the dorsum, head, and rhinophores, under the aforementioned white pigmentation, with some faint white pigmentation anterior and posterior to the pericardium. This brownish orange colouration appears to be the main externally obvious difference between the specimens from Koh Tao and those described by Carmona et al. (2014b), but orange pigmentation was described in the original description of the species, particularly in relation to the rhinophores.

Figures

Figure 17. A, B Aeolidiopsis ransoni 23 mm (A) and 25 mm (B) C Baeolidia salaamica 10 mm D Cerberilla ambonensis 20 mm E Cerberilla asamusiensis 8 mm (photograph by Pau Urgell Plaza) F, G Cerberilla cf. incola variants 12 mm (F) and 7 mm (G) H Cerberilla sp. 22 mm I Limenandra confusa 12 mm J Caloria indica 26 mm K Favorinus sp. 1 5 mm L Favorinus sp. 2 5 mm