Stylocheilus is a genus of sea slugs, specifically sea hares, marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusks in the family Aplysiidae, the sea hares.[2][3]
| Stylocheilus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Stylocheilus striatus | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Clade: | Euopisthobranchia |
| Clade: | Anaspidea |
| Superfamily: | Aplysioidea |
| Family: | Aplysiidae |
| Genus: | Stylocheilus Gould, 1852[1] |
| Type species | |
| Aplysia longicauda Quoy & Gaimard, 1825 | |
According to some authors this genus belongs in the family Dolabriferidae.
Species
editSpecies in the genus Stylocheilus include:
- Stylocheilus polyomma (Mörch, 1863)
- Stylocheilus rickettsi (MacFarland, 1966)
- Stylocheilus striatus Quoy & Gaimard, 1832
- Distribution : Indo-Pacific; intertidal, occurs up to 30 m depth
- Length : 65 mm
- Color : brownish, with blue spots; lined species, with dark longitudinal lines (as stated by its name striatus) and small eyespots, providing excellent camouflage.
- Description : Feeds on blue-green algae; gives off a purple ink when disturbed.
- Taxon inquirendum
- Stylocheilus longicauda Quoy & Gaimard, 1824 - Blue-ring Sea Hare, Lemon Sea Hare (used to be called Stylocheilus citrina)
- Distribution : circumtropical, Indo-West Pacific.
- Color : bright yellow or green with bluish eyespots, no lines.
- Description : This is one of the most specialized sea hares; elongate body with a long "tail" (as stated by its name longicauda), adapted for living on floating seaweed; feeds on Mermaid's Hair, blue-green algae of species Lynghya majuscula; at times, they are abundant, with several thousands crawling in the sand, traveling in chains ("snail trail") up to 10 m long
- Species brought into synonymy
- Stylocheilus citrinus (Rang, 1828) is a synonym of Stylocheilus longicauda (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825)
- Stylocheilus lineolatus Gould, 1852: synonym of Stylocheilus longicauda (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825)
- Stylocheilus quercinus Gould, 1852
References
edit- ^ Gould A. (1852). "Mollusca and Shells". In: Wilkes Ch., United States Exploring Expeditions, 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, 1842 under the command of Charles Wilkes, U.S.N.. Philadelphia, C. Sherman & son, 12: pages 224-225.
- ^ MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Stylocheilus Gould, 1852. Accessed on 2021-01-27.
- ^ Bazzicalupo, E.; Crocetta, F.; Gosliner, T. M.; Berteaux-Lecellier, V.; Camacho-García, Y. E.; Chandran, B. K. S.; Valdés, Á. (2020). Molecular and morphological systematics of Bursatella leachii de Blainville, 1817 and Stylocheilus striatus Quoy & Gaimard, 1832 reveal cryptic diversity in pantropically distributed taxa (Mollusca : Gastropoda : Heterobranchia). Invertebrate Systematics. 34: 535-568.
- Rolán E., 2005. Malacological Fauna From The Cape Verde Archipelago. Part 1, Polyplacophora and Gastropoda
External links
edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stylocheilus.
- SEM images of the radula can be found at Thompson, T.E.; Bebbington, A. (1973). "Scanning electron microscope studies of gastropod radulae". Malacologia. 14: 147–165.
- Image of the Blue-ring Sea Hare
- 'Snail trail' of the Blue-ring Sea Hare
- Image of Stylocheilus striatus
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