Okenia zoobotryon

Okenia zoobotryon is a species of sea slug, a dorid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Goniodorididae.[2] It is normally found on the colonial bryozoan Zoobotryon verticillatum on which it lives and feeds.

Okenia zoobotryon
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Heterobranchia
clade Euthyneura
clade Nudipleura
clade Nudibranchia
clade Euctenidiacea
clade Doridacea
Superfamily:
Onchidoridoidea
Family:
Goniodorididae
Genus:
Okenia
Species:
O. zoobotryon
Binomial name
Okenia zoobotryon
(Smallwood, 1910)
Synonyms
  • Bermudella zoobotryon (Smallwood, 1910)[1]
  • Polycerella zoobotryon Smallwood, 1910

Distribution

Okenia zoobotryon is found in the temperate and warm waters of the western Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. It was also reported from the Canary Islands, Brazil and Australia, on the assumption that it had travelled with its host species.[3] This is now known to be incorrect and the animals from the Pacific Ocean have been shown to be distinct species.[4]

Description

Okenia zoobotryon is a small sea slug growing to between 3 and 6 mm (0.12 and 0.24 in) in length. The maximum recorded body length is 8 mm.[5] The rhinophores are unusual in that they have three to six cup-shaped folds on the posterior face. There are up to nine papillae (fleshy protuberances) in front of the gills and about six on either side of the mantle ridge. These papillae have slender stalks and globular tips. The colour of this sea slug is a translucent white speckled with brown spots on the mantle and with a few opaque white spots on the sides of the body and foot.[3] This species is similar in shape and arrangement of the papillae to Okenia mija, Okenia angelensis, Okenia harastii and Okenia distincta.[6][7]

Ecology

It lives, feeds and lays its eggs primarily on the bryozoan Zoobotryon verticillatum. Occasionally the egg masses and adults are found on the bryozoan Scrupocellaria regularis and the red alga Gracilaria sp. growing in tangled clumps with Zoobotryon verticillatum and adults have occasionally been found on the bryozoan Bowerbankia maxima.[8]

Minimum recorded depth is 1 m.[5] Maximum recorded depth is 5 m.[5]

Okenia zoobotryon lays egg masses on the surface of its host. These are flat, gelatinous ribbons attached by one edge to the underlying surface. The eggs are enclosed in capsules and hatch after about five days, developing into veliger larvae that soon begin to feed on microalgae and are planktonic. They settle in about eight days, being attracted to Zoobotryon verticillatum by chemical cues, and undergo metamorphosis into juveniles within twenty-four hours of settlement.[8]

Okenia zoobotryon seems to be a stenophagous feeder, one that selectively feeds on one organism but is able to feed on others if the main prey species is unavailable. In fact, during feeding trials, adults did not actively select Zoobotryon verticillatum over other possible prey species. Zoobotryon verticillatum contains certain secondary metabolites which make it distasteful to most predators. Okenia zoobotryon feeding on it were found to contain many of the same chemicals and it is likely that these have similar anti-predatory functions in the sea slug.[8]

References
  1. Smallwood, W.M., 1910. Notes on the Hydroids and Nudibranchs of Bermuda. Proc. Zool. Soc. London. 1: 137-145
  2. Caballer, M.; Gofas, S. (2015). Okenia zoobotryon (Smallwood, 1910). In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species on 2015-10-21
  3. Rudman, W. B. (2004-12-21). "Okenia zoobotryon (Smallwood, 1910)". Sea Slug Forum. Retrieved 2014-01-14.
  4. Pola, M., 2015. The Identity of Okenia zoobotryon (Smallwood, 1910) (Nudibranchia: Goniodorididae): Redescription and Proposed Designation of a Neotype. American Malacological Bulletin 33(1):72-77.
  5. Welch J. J. (2010). "The “Island Rule” and Deep-Sea Gastropods: Re-Examining the Evidence". PLoS ONE 5(1): e8776. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0008776.
  6. Ianello, L., 2013. Okenia zoobotryon. Photographs at: JaxShells.org
  7. Valdés, Ángel; Hamann, Jeff; Behrens, David W.; DuPont, Anne. Caribbean Sea Slugs, Sea Challengers Natural History Books, Etc., Gig Harbor, Washington 2006, pp. 116-117. ISBN 0-9700574-2-3 page 126.
  8. Robinson, N. M. (2001). "Interactions between the nudibranch Okenia zoobotryon and its bryozoan prey Zoobotryon verticillatum" (PDF). Thesis, Master of Sciences. University of Central Florida. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
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