''Aldisa cooperi'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

sea slug Sea slug is a common name for some marine invertebrates with varying levels of resemblance to terrestrial slugs. Most creatures known as sea slugs are gastropods, i.e. they are sea snails (marine gastropod mollusks) that over evolutionary t ...

, a

dorid ''Doridacea'' is a taxonomic grouping of dorid nudibranchs, shell-less marine gastropod mollusks.Bouchet P. & Rocroi J.-P. (Ed.); Frýda J., Hausdorf B., Ponder W., Valdes A. & Warén A. 2005''Classification and nomenclator of gastropod families ...

nudibranch Nudibranchs () are a group of soft-bodied marine gastropod molluscs which shed their shells after their larval stage. They are noted for their often extraordinary colours and striking forms, and they have been given colourful nicknames to matc ...

, a

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

gastropod The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. T ...

mollusc Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is esti ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Cadlinidae Cadlinidae is a family of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Doridoidea. Molecular phylogenetic studies and their taxon-sampling schemes can have a strong influence of the resulting phylogeny. Research by ...

Distribution

This

demersal The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of ...

nudibranch is found in cold to temperate waters, from the intertidal to subtidal zones (up to a depth of 20 m), along the Pacific coast of North America, from

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

. It has also been reported from the coasts of Japan and Korea.

Description

Cooper's aldisa is a small dorid nudibranch, growing to a length of 25 mm. Its mantle has a yellow to orange color, with some black spots spread over it. It has a smooth body covered with sparse, low tubercles and gills clustered on the posterior part of its body. It lays its eggs in ribbons.

Conservation status

The vulnerability of this species is low to moderate, but it is not listed in the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

Ecology

It is usually found nestled in its food sponge ''Anthoarcuata graciae''. This sponge is currently classified as a member of the genus ''

Antho ''Antho'' is a genus of sponges belonging to the family Microcionidae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, cosmopolitan distribution is the term for the range of a taxon that extends across all or most of the world in ...

'', family Clathriidae, but may actually belong to the family

Hymedesmiidae Hymedesmiidae is a family of demosponges in the order Poecilosclerida. Genera * ''Acanthancora'' * ''Hamigera (sponge), Hamigera'' * ''Hemimycale'' * ''Hymedesmia'' * ''Kirkpatrickia'' * ''Myxodoryx'' * ''Phorbas (sponge), Phorbas'' * ' ...

as other

Aldisa Aldisa is a genus of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cadlinidae.Valdés Á. (2002). ''A phylogenetic analysis and systematic revision of the cryptobranch dorids (Mollusca, Nudibranchia, Anthobranchia)''. Zool ...

species specialise on sponges from this family. Ayer, S.W.; Andersen, R.J. Steroidal antifeedants from the dorid nudibranch ''Aldisa sanguinea cooperi''. Tetrahedron Lett. 1982, 23, 1039–1042.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3141636 Cadlinidae Gastropods described in 1972