Aldisa cf. albatrossae  Elwood, Valdès, & Gosliner, 2000

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This species has been observed on Madagascar Island

Order : Nudibranchia Suborder : Euctenidiacea Superfamily : Doridoidea Family : Cadlinidae Distribution : Madagascar Maximal size : 20 mm Abundance : Species characteristics : The dorsum is bluish to grey, darker at the edges with numerous whitish tubercles Black marks between the rhinophores and before the gills Yellow-orange marks are present at the level of the rhinophores and the gills Rhinophores and gills whitish to grey
	Showing species characteristics...	Photo Alain-Benoît Rassat Madagascar, Pterois, Nosy bé, 12 m, 1 October 2013, size : 20 mm

Remarks :

This species looks like Aldisa albatrossae but there is one difference :
                 - In ours specimens we don't observed the classical pattern on the black markings on the notum. In Aldisa albatrossae description : " The black pattern begins as a T-shape crossing in front of and between the rhinophores. Behind the rhinophores, the T-shape connects with a black rectangular mark that spans the dorsum to the branchial pocket. Two black lines extend from the rectangular mark around the sides of the branchial pocket." ( partially observed in ours specimens... so Aldisa cf. albatrossae...)
    For some specialists it could be A. andersoni for other A. albatrossae, so for the moment it's better to called this species Aldisa cf. albatrossae

Bibliographic data :

Yellow-orange splotches are present on the dorsum of the living animal. These marks of yellow-orange lie at the front edges of the T of the black mark and along the anterior edge of the rectangular portion of the black mark. Yellow-orange lines also extend from the sides of the branchial pocket to the posterior edges of the dorsum.
    It is similar in coloration to Aldisa andersoni, A albatrossae, A. williamsi and A. erwinkoehleri, but differs in a number of characteristics :

	A. andersoni	A. albatrossae	A. erwinkoehleri	A. williamsi
Tubercles	Clearly arranged in rows or ridges.	Randomly distributed.
Black coloration	Found uniformly over the mantle separating the rows of tubercles	Forms a rectangle on the dorsum with a T-shape mark anterior to the rhinophores	Forms concentric rings
Yellow pigmentation	Yellow color markings are more extensive with a yellow saddle behing the rhinophores extending to the edge of the mantle	The yellow color markings are less extensive		No yellow pigmentation.
Arrangement of tubercles around the rhinophoral pockets	Two equally sized tubercles	Four similarly sized equally separated tubercles	Two equally sized tubercles	Two large and two small tubercles
Localisation	Sri Lanka	Japan, Indonesia	Thailand, Andaman sea.	Papua New Guinea, Sulawesi, Indonesia.

References :

Okinawa Seaslug : Aldisa albatrossae
   Medslug Aldisa albatrossae

Publications :

Elwood, H.R., Valdés, Á., & Gosliner, T.M. 2000. Two new species of Aldisa Bergh, 1878 (Mollusca, Nudibranchia) from the Tropical Indo-Pacific. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 52(14): 171-181, 5 figs.

Other photos of Aldisa cf. albatrossae :

Alain-Benoît Rassat Madagascar, Nosy bé, 12 m, size : 10 mm

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