''Cliopsis'' Troschel, 1854 is a genus of sea angels belonging to the family Cliopsidae. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

, being represented by the single species ''Cliopsis krohnii''.

Taxonomy

The Marine Species Identification Portal recognizes three morphs : * ''Cliopsis krohni'' morpha ''grandis'' Boas, 1886; body length : 40 mm * ''Cliopsis krohni'' morpha ''krohni'' Troschel, 1854; body length : 24 mm * ''Cliopsis krohni'' morpha ''modesta'' (Pelseneer, 1887); body length : 3 mm

Description

''Cliopsis krohnii'' has a somewhat long, flabby, gelatinous body with a bluish aspect. The head is rather small with the nuchal tentacles much developed. The posterior gill possesses four distinct radiating hexagonal crests lacking foldings or fringes. The foot is reduced to three small median lobes. The anterior lobes of the foot show a posterior right angle. The posterior end of the foot has a folded tubercle that is not divided by longitudinal wrinkle in the middle. The distal extremities of the fins are rounded. It lacks a shell except during its early

embryo An embryo is an initial stage of development of a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male spe ...

nic stage. The small lateral winglike flaps (

parapodia In invertebrates, the term parapodium ( Gr. ''para'', beyond or beside + ''podia'', feet; plural: parapodia) refers to lateral outgrowths or protrusions from the body. Parapodia are predominantly found in annelids, where they are paired, unjointed ...

) are used in a slow swimming mode. This species is a highly specialized predator. It preys on pseudothecosomes, such as ''Corolla''. On making contact with the wide mucous web of its victim, it grabs the victim with a long

proboscis A proboscis () is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In invertebrates, the term usually refers to tubular mouthparts used for feeding and sucking. In vertebrates, a proboscis is an elong ...

(up to twice its own length),

chitin Chitin ( C8 H13 O5 N)n ( ) is a long-chain polymer of ''N''-acetylglucosamine, an amide derivative of glucose. Chitin is probably the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature (behind only cellulose); an estimated 1 billion tons of chit ...

ous hooks (with the hook sacs containing about 60 hooks) and cutting

radula The radula (, ; plural radulae or radulas) is an anatomical structure used by molluscs for feeding, sometimes compared to a tongue. It is a minutely toothed, chitinous ribbon, which is typically used for scraping or cutting food before the food ...

r teeth. They can eat victims three times their own size.

Distribution and habitat

''Cliopsis krohnii'' is a small free-swimming

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 ...

, found in all warm and temperate seas where it is pelagic and lives amidst

plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) that are unable to propel themselves against a Ocean current, current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankt ...

as deep as 1,500 m.

References

External links

Report of the Scientific results of the Voyage of the H.M.S. Challenger (1873-1876), Zoology, part LVIII (1887) : Report on the Pteropoda by Paul PelseneerWoRMS : Cliopsis krohnii

Taxonomy

Description

Distribution and habitat

References

External links

Further reading