Phyllodesmium briareum is a species of sea slug, an aeolid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Facelinidae.[1]
| Phyllodesmium briareum | |
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| Phyllodesmium briareum, head end towards the right | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| (unranked): | clade Heterobranchia
clade Euthyneura |
| Superfamily: | |
| Family: | |
| Subfamily: | |
| Genus: | |
| Species: | P. briareum
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| Binomial name | |
| Phyllodesmium briareum (Bergh, 1896)
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| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Ennoia briareus Bergh, 1896 | |
Distribution edit
The distribution of Phyllodesmium briareum includes Indo-Pacific and Australia.[2]
Description edit
Phyllodesmium briareum uses camouflage and looks like the soft coral Briareum violacea with which it is often found. It grows to 25 mm in length. This species contains zooxanthellae but has cerata of conventional aeolid shape.[3][2]
Ecology edit
Phyllodesmium briareum is reported to feed on a number of species of briareid soft coral including Solenopodium stelleri and Briareum stecheri (sensu MacFadyen, 1936). It is also reported from Pachyclavularia violacea.[4][2]
References edit
- ^ a b Bouchet, P. 2015. Phyllodesmium briareum. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2015-10-06
- ^ a b c Rudman, W.B., 1999 (November 25) Phyllodesmium briareum (Bergh, 1896). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.
- ^ Rudman, W. B. 1981. The anatomy and biology of alcyonarian-feeding aeolid opisthobranch mollusks and their development of symbiosis with zooxanthellae. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 72:219–262.
- ^ Rudman W.B. 1991. Further studies on the taxonomy and biology of the octocoral-feeding genus Phyllodesmium Ehrenberg, 1831 (Nudibranchia: Aeolidoidea). Journal of Molluscan Studies 57: 167-203
External links edit
- Photos of Phyllodesmium briareum on Sealife Collection