sea slug

A new species of Trapania Pruvot-Fol, 1931 (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Opisthobranchia, Nudibranchia) from the Caribbean Sea with an analysis of its phylogenetic relationships

Trapania bonellenae , a new species from Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles belonging to the nudibranch family Goniodorididae, is characterized by having a unique translucent grey color with a pattern of black pigment, a complex network of opaque white lines covering almost the entire notum and very elongate extra-branchial and extra-rhinophoral appendages. The radular teeth are characterized by a very long and narrow subterminal cusp. A phylogenetic analysis of all species of Trapania for which there is enough morphological information available, reveals that the new species is most closely related to a group of mostly Indo-Pacific species. The support and resolution for this clade are weak and more research is necessary

Date
2009
Data type
Scientific article
Tags
Geographic location
Bonaire
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