Blue spot slug (Polycera elegans)
Polycera elegans on bryozoan.
Photographer: Keith Hiscock Copyright: Dr Keith Hiscock
Polycera elegans.
Photographer: Keith Hiscock Copyright: Dr Keith Hiscock
Distribution data supplied by the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS). To interrogate UK data visit the NBN Atlas.Map Help
| Researched by | Emily Wilson | Refereed by | Admin |
| Authority | (Bergh, 1894) | ||
| Other common names | - | Synonyms | Greilada elegans |
Summary
Description
A distinctive colourful sea slug. The smooth body is orange in colour with brilliant blue blotches that sometimes contain crimson flecks. It has 5 - 7 robust and feathery trilobed gills with iridescent blue-green lines along their ribs. The head may bear up to 22 finger-like projections. It can grow up to 4 cm in length although a maximum size of 4.8 cm has been recorded.
Recorded distribution in Britain and Ireland
Kilkieran Bay, Co. Galway; Sheep Haven, Co. Donegal; Skomer Island, Pembrokeshire; Lundy, south Cornwall.Global distribution
-Habitat
Found on rocky coasts feeding on the erect bryozoan Bugulina turbinata and probably other species of Bugula.Depth range
-Identifying features
- Orange colouration with large iridescent blue spots.
- Rhinophores and gills without sheaths or accessory processes.
- Frontal veil produced anteriorly into small digitiform papillae.
- Up to seven large, trilobed gills.
Additional information
No text entered
Listed by
- none -
Bibliography
Hayward, P., Nelson-Smith, T. & Shields, C. 1996. Collins pocket guide. Sea shore of Britain and northern Europe. London: HarperCollins.
Hayward, P.J. & Ryland, J.S. (ed.) 1995b. Handbook of the marine fauna of North-West Europe. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Howson, C.M. & Picton, B.E., 1997. The species directory of the marine fauna and flora of the British Isles and surrounding seas. Belfast: Ulster Museum. [Ulster Museum publication, no. 276.]
Picton, B. E. & Morrow, C.C., 1994. A Field Guide to the Nudibranchs of the British Isles. London: Immel Publishing Ltd.
Thompson, T. E. & Brown, G. H., 1976. British Opisthobranch Molluscs. London: Academic Press. [Synopses of the British Fauna, no. 8.]
Datasets
NBN (National Biodiversity Network) Atlas. Available from: https://www.nbnatlas.org.
OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System), 2023. Global map of species distribution using gridded data. Available from: Ocean Biogeographic Information System. www.iobis.org. Accessed: 2023-03-30
Citation
This review can be cited as:
Last Updated: 14/09/1999
