Verconia norba

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Verconia norba
Noumea norba.jpg
Verconia norba off of Guam, head end towards the bottom of the image
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Heterobranchia

clade Euthyneura
clade Nudipleura
clade Nudibranchia
clade Euctenidiacea

clade Doridacea
Superfamily:
Doridoidea
Family:
Chromodorididae
Genus:
Verconia
Species:
V. norba
Binomial name
Verconia norba
(Marcus & Marcus, 1970)
Synonyms

Noumea norba Er. Marcus & Ev. Marcus, 1970

Verconia norba is a species of colorful sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusk in the family Chromodorididae.[1]

Distribution[]

This species is found throughout the tropical Indo-West Pacific.[2]

Description[]

The length of the body varies between 7 mm and 25 mm. In this species the mantle can vary in color from reddish purple to pinkish orange. The mantle border is creamy white. Just inside the mantle border are a series of reddish purple streaks or smudged marks which are a more vibrant purple than the main body color. Along the midline of the animal is a white patch that matches the white border. This patch sometimes encircles the gills and extends anteriorly between the rhinophores. The line is often broken into two patches anterior-posteriorly. The rhinophores and branchia (gills) have an orange-red tint. Identifying individual purple sea slugs within the genus Noumea can be challenging because purple forms exist in several related species.

Ecology[]

The food source for this species has not been definitely identified, however this species has been found on coralline alga, which may prove to be part of its diet.[3]

References[]

  1. ^ Bieler, R. (2015). Verconia norba (Er. Marcus & Ev. Marcus, 1970). In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=866658 on 2016-01-13
  2. ^ Noumea norba, Sea Slug Forum.
  3. ^ Noumea norba food source, Sea Slug Forum.
  • Marcus, E. & Marcus, E. 1970. Opisthobranch Mollusks from the Southern Tropical Pacific. Pacific Science 24: 155-179
  • Debelius, H. & Kuiter, R.H. 2007. Nudibranchs of the world. Frankfurt : IKAN-Unterwasserarchiv.

External links[]

  • Noumea norba on Sea Slug Forum
  • Noumea norba on Nudipixel
  • "Noumea norba". Gastropods.com. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
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