Phyllodesmium longicirrum

Phyllodesmium longicirrum, common name the solar-powered phyllodesmium, is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Facelinidae.[1]

Phyllodesmium longicirrum crawling on the soft coral Sarcophyton trocheliophorum.

Phyllodesmium longicirrum
Phyllodesmium longicirrum, head end towards the lower left, crawling on its prey the soft coral Sarcophyton trocheliophorum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Heterobranchia

clade Euthyneura
clade Nudipleura
clade Nudibranchia
clade Dexiarchia
clade Cladobranchia

clade Aeolidida
Superfamily:
Aeolidioidea
Family:
Facelinidae
Subfamily:
Favorininae
Genus:
Phyllodesmium
Species:
P. longicirrum
Binomial name
Phyllodesmium longicirrum
(Bergh, 1905)
Synonyms
  • Myrrhine longicirra
  • Phyllodesmium longicirra

Distribution

The distribution of Phyllodesmium longicirrum includes Australia and Indonesia.[2]

Description

This is a very large species, growing to at least 140 mm. Phyllodesmium longicirrum contains photosynthetic zooxanthellae, which allow it to draw energy from sunlight, hence its common name, the solar-powered phyllodesmium.[3] This is actually a misleading name, as several other species of Phyllodesmium are also capable of photosynthesis, although this is developed to the greatest extreme in this species.[4][5]

A closeup of the nudibranch, showing the clusters of zooxanthellae

Ecology

Phyllodesmium longicirrum feeds on soft coral Sarcophyton trocheliophorum (family Alcyoniidae).[2]

References
  1. Bouchet, P. (2015). Phyllodesmium longicirrum. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2015-10-07
  2. Rudman, W.B., 1998 (October 11) Phyllodesmium longicirrum (Bergh, 1905). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.
  3. Rudman W. B. (1981). "The anatomy and biology of alcyonarian-feeding aeolid opisthobranch molluscs and their development of symbiosis with zooxanthellae". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 72(3): 219-262. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.1981.tb01571.x.
  4. Rudman W. B. (1991). "Further studies on the taxonomy and biology of the octocoral-feeding genus Phyllodesmium Ehrenberg, 1831 (Nudibranchia: Aeolidacea)". Journal of Molluscan Studies 57(2): 167–203. abstract.
  5. Rudman, W.B., 1998 (October 11) Solar-powered sea slugs. [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.
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