''Baeolidia chaka'', 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 ...

, an aeolid

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 ...

. It is 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 ...

Aeolidiidae Aeolidiidae, a family of aeolid nudibranchs, are a family of sea slugs, shell-less marine gastropod molluscs.Bouchet, P. (2014)''Aeolidiidae'' Gray, 1827.Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2014-10-24 Most, or perhaps all, mem ...

.Rosenberg, G.; Bouchet, P. (2014)
''Baeolidia chaka'' (Gosliner, 1985).
Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2015-02-24.

Distribution

This species was described from two specimens collected in the

intertidal zone The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore, is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide (in other words, the area within the tidal range). This area can include several types of habitats with various species o ...

at Jesser Point,

Sodwana Bay National Park Sodwana Bay National Park, is a park situated on the north eastern coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; it is located within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park World Heritage Site 20 minutes away from local town Mbazwana. This park is known for sp ...

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Description

The body of ''Baeolidia chaka'' is translucent white with a dense pattern of opaque white pigment over much of the surface. The head and the bases of the

rhinophore A rhinophore is one of a pair of chemosensory club-shaped, rod-shaped or ear-like structures which are the most prominent part of the external head anatomy in sea slugs, marine gastropod opisthobranch mollusks such as the nudibranchs, sea har ...

s and oral tentacles are covered with chocolate-brown pigment. Brown pigment is also present at the bases of the

cerata :''The tortrix moth genus ''Cerata'' is considered a junior synonym of ''Cydia. Cerata, singular ceras, are anatomical structures found externally in nudibranch sea slugs, especially in aeolid nudibranchs, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks ...

and more diffusely on the dorsal portion of the foot. The digestive gland within the cerata is rusty brown. The cerata are ornamented with opaque white pigment, which is densest on their anterior sides and on irregular tubercles on the surfaces. The tips of the cerata are opaque white with a thin sub-apical band of chocolate brown and a wider band of opaque white.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q20685982 Endemic fauna of South Africa Aeolidiidae Gastropods described in 1985