''Vayssierea felis'' 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
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 ...
, a dorid
nudibranch, 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 ...
mollusk
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 e ...
in the family
Okadaiidae
Okadaiidae is a family of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, marine gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Polyceroidea. This family is within the clade Euctenidiacea.
This family has no subfamilies.
Genera
* ''Vayssierea'' (Risbec, 1928)
** ''Vays ...
.
Description
This red-orange nudibranch can grow up to 6mm in size.
[Rudman, W.B., 2000 (April 12) ''Vayssierea felis'' (Collingwood, 1881). '' nSea Slug Forum.'' Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet/vaysfelis] It reproduces by direct development and lays an egg mass of 3-5 eggs.
Range
This species was originally named in the South China sea, however many argue that all ''Vayssierea'' are one species with a wider range that occurs in the
Indo-West Pacific.
It has also recently been documented in its non-native range in San Diego, CA.
[Sorensen, Kara, Brandon Swope, and Victoria Kirtay. ''Marine ecological index survey of San Diego Bay''. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COASTAL WATER RESEARCH PROJECT WESTMINSTER, 2013.]
Habitat
This species can be found in the intertidal zone, usually associated with the ''
Spirorbis'' tube worms they eat.
Ecology
''V. felis'' feeds on ''
Spirorbis'' tube worms in the intertidal zone.
Taxonomy
This species, originally found in the South China Sea, was named ''Trevelyana felis'' by Collingwood in 1881. It genus was later changed when more information was discovered. The exact taxonomic placement of this organism is still debated and many people believe that all ''
Vayssierea
''Vayssierea'' is a genus of sea slugs, dorid nudibranchs, shell-less marine gastropod mollusks in the family Okadaiidae.Bouchet, P. (2011). Vayssierea. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php ...
spp.'' should be under this one species name.
References
Okadaiidae
Gastropods described in 1881
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