Ancula gibbosa
Atlantic ancula | |
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Chromolithograph of Ancula gibbosa from Kunstformen der Natur (1904) | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | |
Phylum: | |
Class: | |
(unranked): | clade Heterobranchia
clade Euthyneura |
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Genus: | |
Species: | A. gibbosa
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Binomial name | |
Ancula gibbosa | |
Synonyms[3] | |
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Ancula gibbosa, common name Atlantic ancula, is a species of dorid nudibranch. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Goniodorididae.
Distribution
This species was described from the Mediterranean Sea at Nice, France. It has a wide distribution from there along the Atlantic coast to Norway, Greenland, Iceland and across to New England on the coast of North America. Ancula pacifica apparently has a number of colour varieties which closely approach this species and is currently believed to be a synonym.[4]
Description
This goniodorid nudibranch has a translucent white body with yellow or white tipped processes.[5]
Ecology
Ancula gibbosa feeds on Ectoprocta. It has been reported to possibly feed on a variety of sessile organisms, but these are just the substratum to which the ectoprocts are attached.[5]
References
- ^ Template:Fr icon Risso A. (1818). "Memoire sur quelques Gasteropodes nouveaux, Nudibranches et Tectibranches observes dans la Mer de Nice". Journal de Physique, de Chimie, d'Histoire Naturelle et des Arts 87: 368-377. Tritonia gibbosa is on the page 371.
- ^ Alder J. (1841). "Observations on the genus Polycera of Cuvier, with descriptions of two new British species". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 6: 337–342. doi:10.1080/03745484109442937.
- ^ "Ancula gibbosa (Risso, 1818)". Malacolog Version 4.1.1. A Database of Western Atlantic Marine Mollusca. Accessed 17 February 2010.
- ^ Rudman, W.B., 2000 (March 24) Ancula gibbosa (Risso, 1818). [In] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.
- ^ a b Picton, B.E. & Morrow, C.C., 2010. Ancula gibbosa [In] Encyclopedia of Marine Life of Britain and Ireland.