''Hypselodoris carnea'' 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 ...

of colourful

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 ...

or dorid

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 ...

Chromodorididae Chromodorididae, or chromodorids, are a taxonomic family of colourful, sea slugs; dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Doridoidea. “Chromodorid nudibranchs are among the most gorgeously coloured of all animals.” ...

.Caballer, M. (2011)
''Hypselodoris carnea'' (Bergh, 1889).
Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2012-05-28

Distribution

This nudibranch was described from Île aux Fouquets,

Grand Port Grand Port () is a district of Mauritius, situated in the east of the island. The name means "large port" in French. The district has an area of 260.3 km2 and the population estimate was at 112,997 as of 31 December 2015. History Grand Po ...

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

. It is frequently reported from

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 ...

, along the

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

coast but these animals differ considerably from the original description.Rudman, W.B., 1999 (December 10
''Hypselodoris carnea'' (Bergh, 1889).
nSea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney.

Description

''Hypselodoris carnea'' has a flesh-red mantle with six (rarely five) longitudinal white lines, white spots and carmine spots between the lines. The edge of the mantle is yellow-red. It was described as reaching a total length of 22 mm alive. There is wide range of colour variation reported for this species and South African animals have many white lines instead of six, suggesting a species complex. It is said to be easily mistaken for '' Hypselodoris capensis'' and perhaps species of the '' Hypselodoris maculosa'' complex.Bidgrain, P., 2018
Variability in ''Hypselodoris maculosa''
Sea Slugs of the Indian Ocean, accessed 2012-01-16. It feeds on sponges.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5961588 Chromodorididae Gastropods described in 1889