''Duvaucelia odhneri'', 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 dendronotid

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 ...

Tritoniidae Tritoniidae is a taxonomic family of nudibranchs in the suborder Cladobranchia, shell-less marine gastropod molluscs.MolluscaBase (2018)Tritoniidae Lamarck, 1809.Accessed on 2021-01-01 This family includes some of the largest known nudibranchs, ...

. The specific name ''odhneri'' is in honour of Swedish malacologist

Nils Hjalmar Odhner Nils Hjalmar Odhner (6 December 1884 – 12 June 1973) was a Swedish zoologist who studied mollusks, a malacologist. He was professor of invertebrate zoology at the Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, and a member of the Royal Swedish Ac ...

. This species was originally described as ''Duvaucelia odhneri'' but this became a homonym of ''Tritonia odhneri'' Marcus, 1959 when the genus ''Duvaucelia'' was moved within ''Tritonia'' in 1983. In 2020 the genus ''Duvaucelia'' was brought back into use and the name reverted to the original combination of Tardy, 1963.Korshunova, T.; Martynov, A. (2020)
Consolidated data on the phylogeny and evolution of the family Tritoniidae (Gastropoda: Nudibranchia) contribute to genera reassessment and clarify the taxonomic status of the neuroscience models ''Tritonia'' and ''Tochuina''.
PLOS ONE. 15(11): e0242103.

Distribution

This species is found in the north

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

off the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is also 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 ...

but DNA evidence suggests that this is a distinct, as yet un-named, species. Around the South African coast this species is found on both sides of the

Cape Peninsula The Cape Peninsula ( af, Kaapse Skiereiland) is a generally mountainous peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean at the south-western extremity of the African continent. At the southern end of the peninsula are Cape Point and the Cape of ...

. It is known from 10–30 m.

Description

The South African whip fan nudibranch is a well-camouflaged animal which mimics the gorgonians on which it feeds. It is a small nudibranch, reaching 30 mm. Its branched

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 hares ...

extend from cup-like sheaths. Paired branching projections down the length of the body resemble the feeding polyps of its prey species of sea fan.Zsilavecz, G. 2007. ''Nudibranchs of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay''.

Ecology

The whip fan nudibranch feeds on gorgonians of the genus ''

Eunicella ''Eunicella'' is a genus of coral in the family Gorgoniidae family. Species The World Register of Marine Species lists the following species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, a ...

''. It lays a thin zigzag spiral of eggs around the main axis of these sea fans. The egg mass is also coloured to match the gorgonians.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3201261 Tritoniidae Gastropods described in 1963