| ORDER : NUDIBRANCHIA | ||||
| Suborder : DORIDINA | ||||
| Superfamily : Anadoridoidea | ||||
| Family : Aegiridae, Goniodorididae, Gymnodorididae and Polyceridae | ||||
In the Anadoridoidea there is no pocket into which the gills can be withdrawn, although the gills can retract against the body when the animal is disturbed. Another name for this group is the "Phanerobranchia'"which means "visible gills".
The mantle rim is usualy reduced, sometimes indetectable.
The Aegiridae (Fischer, 1883)
The smooth rhinophores without any elaboration, which are characteristic of the Aegiridae and unique among dorids.
As a result of having an unprotected gill, these animals have developed protective appendages for the gill leaves.
A hard body with calcareous spicules.
Notodoris (Bergh, 1875)
Body and mantle : Limaciform, firm-bodied nudibranchs with the mantle skirt reduced and indistinct. The skin is toughened with tiny spicules.
Photo : N. minor |
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Gills : Projecting pallial lobes protect the gills, which may be simple, bipinnate or tripinnate, arranged in an arc anterior to the anal papilla
Photo : N. minor |
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Rhinophores : The small rhinophores are smooth and simple
Photo : N. minor |
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Aegires (Loven, 1844)
Diagnoses of this genus have been provided by multiple authors : Lovén (1844), Schmekel and Portmann (1982), and Thompson and Brown (1984). The body is firm, with a reduced, indistinct mantle skirt. The dorsum is covered with numerous blunt, pedunculate dorsal tubercles. The smooth rhinophores extend from cylindrical pallial sheaths that have tubercles around the rims. The gill is protected by tuberculate lobes.
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The Gymnodorididae (Odhner, 1941)
Gymnodoris (Stimpson, 1855)
Body and mantle : The body is usually elongate, tapering posteriorly into a pointed tail. The mantle edge is reduced to a slight ridge around the head. Most species of Gymnodoris are white with yelow or orange marking, and are small, less than 20 mm in long Photo : Gymnodoris sp |
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Gills : The gills, usually simple or bipinnate, are arranged in an arc or sometimes a complete circle |
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Behavior : All members of this family feed on other nudibranchs or related opisthobranchs. The will track their prey until close enough to attack. Just before closing in on the unsuspecting victim, it will rear up like a striking snake, then lunge forward, seizing its meal and swallowing it whole |
The Polyceridae (Alder & Hancock, 1845)
Subfamily: Triophinae (Odhner, 1968)
ex : Plocamopherus
Body and mantle : Limaciform, soft-bodied doridaceans with the mantle skirt reduced to form a tuberculated ridge continuous around the frontal margin. The tubercles are often arborescent and complex and similar excrescences are sometimes found on the flanks and dorsum. Photo : Plocamopherus sp |
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Gills : The bipinnate or tripinnate gills form an arc in front of the anal papilla; they lack protective pallial lobes, but they may be flanked by paired, clubbed cerata (Plocamopherus) |
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Rhinophores : Rhinophores lamellate, retractile into low, plain sheaths |