Costasiella is a genus of sacoglossan sea slugs, a shell-less marine opisthobranchid gastropod mollusk in the family Costasiellidae.[2] The Costasiella is defined by some specific characteristics such as smooth rhinophores which are usually simple with dull tips and flattened at their base.[3][4] Other features include rounded, tentacular anterior foot corners that exhibit their spatulate shape to enhance mobility and blade-shaped radular teeth with substantially short bases.[3][4] Most of the genus could be found within the tropical and subtropical regions of the Western Pacific oceans.[4] Their preferred habitats include areas of soft, muddy sediments around intertidal zones.[3][4] Their diets vary from species to species but generally consume various types of green algae, more commonly the Vaucheria and Avrainvillea.[3][4]
| Costasiella | |
|---|---|
| |
| Costasiella kuroshimae on Avrainvillea erecta. Locality: Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef. The length of the slug is about 1 cm. | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Family: | Costasiellidae |
| Genus: | Costasiella Pruvot-Fol, 1951[1] |
| Type species | |
| Costasiella virescens Pruvot-Fol, 1951
| |
The most recent diagnosis of the genus Costasiella is by the Dutch malacologist Cornelis Kees Swennen (2007).[4]
Species
editThere are 17 species in the genus Costasiella[4][2]
- Costasiella arenaria K. R. Jensen, Krug, Dupont & Nishina, 2014
- Costasiella coronata Swennen, 2007[4]
- Costasiella formicaria (Baba, 1959)
- Costasiella fridae Fernández-Simón & Moles, 2023
- Costasiella illa (Marcus, 1965)
- Costasiella iridophora Ichikawa, 1993
- Costasiella kuroshimae Ichikawa, 1993
- Costasiella mandorahae Jensen 1997
- Costasiella nonatoi Marcus & Marcus, 1960
- Costasiella ocellifera (Simroth, 1895)
- Costasiella pallida Jensen, 1985
- Costasiella patricki Espinoza, DuPont & Valdés, 2014
- Costasiella paweli Ichikawa, 1993
- Costasiella rubrolineata Ichikawa, 1993
- Costasiella usagi Ichikawa, 1993
- Costasiella vegae Ichikawa, 1993
- Costasiella virescens Pruvot-Fol, 1951
- Species brought into synonymy
References
edit- ^ (in French) Pruvot-Fol A. (1951). "Étude des nudibranches de la Méditerranée". Archives de zoologie expérimentale et générale 88(1): 73.
- ^ a b Bouchet, P.; Gofas, S. (2015). Costasiella Pruvot-Fol, 1951. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137845 on 2015-01-17
- ^ a b c d Jensen, Kathe (October 21, 2014). "A review of taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships in the genus Costasiella (Heterobranchia: Sacoglossa), with a description of a new species". Journal of Molluscan Studies. 80 (5): 562–574 – via Oxford Academic.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Swennen C. (31 August 2007). "Costasiella coronata, new species, and a revised diagnosis for the Family Costasiellidae (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia: Sacoglossa)". Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 55(2) Archived July 22, 2009, at the Wayback Machine: 355-362. PDF Archived 2011-06-06 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Clark K. B. (1984). "New records and synonymies of Bermuda Opisthobranchs (Gastropoda)". The Nautilus 98: 85–97.