''Phylliroe bucephala'' is a

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...

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 ...

pelagic The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean, and can be further divided into regions by depth (as illustrated on the right). The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or w ...

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 match, ...

, a marine

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 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 ...

Phylliroidae The Phylliroidae are a family of nudibranch sea snails, highly adapted to a pelagic lifestyle and occurring in tropical surface waters around the globe. The two species of the genus '' Phylliroe'' and '' Cephalopyge trematoides'' that have been ...

Biology

This species of nudibranch is transparent with its guts visible through the laterally flattened body. It has a tail and two long smooth

rhinophores 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 ha ...

. It feeds on

jellyfish Jellyfish and sea jellies are the informal common names given to the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animals with umbrella- ...

and

plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in water (or air) that are unable to propel themselves against a current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankters. In the ocean, they provide a crucia ...

as an adult. The juveniles parasitize ''

Zanclea ''Zanclea'' is a genus of hydrozoans belonging to the family Zancleidae. The genus has cosmopolitan distribution. Species Species: *'' Zanclea alba'' *'' Zanclea apicata'' *'' Zanclea apophysis'' *''Zanclea baudini'' *'' Zanclea bomala'' ...

medusae Jellyfish and sea jellies are the informal common names given to the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animals with umbrella- ...

.Gosliner TM, Valdes A Behrens DW 2015 ''Nudibranch and Sea Slug Identification Indo-Pacific'' New World Publications Jacksonville Florida USA

References

* Powell A. W. B., ''New Zealand Mollusca'', William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q3200126 Phylliroidae Gastropods described in 1810