Tritoniella

Tritoniella
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
Subclass:	Heterobranchia
Order:	Nudibranchia
Suborder:	Cladobranchia
Family:	Tritoniidae
Genus:	Tritoniella; Eliot, 1907[1]
Binomial name
	Tritoniella belli; Eliot, 1907[2]

Tritoniella is a genus of sea slugs, specifically dendronotid nudibranchs. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Tritoniidae. A monotypic genus, the only species is Tritoniella belli. The genus and species were both described in 1907 by the British diplomat and malacologist Charles Eliot.[2]

Description

Tritoniella belli can grow to a length of up to 8 cm (3 in). The edge of the mantle is wavy and either smooth or with finger-like protuberances. Most individuals have a ridge running along the middle of the back. The colour is variable, ranging from a translucent milky white to yellow or orange.[3]

Distribution

Tritoniella belli is found around the coasts of Antarctica and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands at depths down to about 700 m (2,300 ft).[3]

Ecology

Tritoniella belli is a common species of nudibranch in the shallow waters of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica.[4] Its diet mostly consists of the soft coral Clavularia frankliniana, but it may also feed on other soft corals, hydroids and sea anemones. C. frankliniana contains the distasteful chemical chimyl alcohol, and the nudibranch incorporates this into its own tissues, using it as a chemical defence to make itself unpalatable.[3]

It is avoided by the predatory starfishes Odontaster validus, Perknaster fuscus and Acodontaster conspicuus because the mucus it extrudes is distasteful; it is preyed on by the sea anemone Isotealia antarctica, but 70% of the encounters between the two result in the nudibranch escaping, or the sea anemone swallowing the nudibranch but then regurgitating it from its gastrovascular cavity.[4] The gelatinous egg ribbons of the nudibranch are also eaten by I. antarctica but rejected by O. validus.[5]

References

Appeltans, Ward (2019). "Tritoniella Eliot, 1907". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
Appeltans, Ward (2019). "Tritoniella belli Eliot, 1907". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
Rudman, W.B (1999). "Tritoniella belli Eliot, 1907". Sea Slug Forum. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
Bryan, P. J.; McClintock, J. B. & Baker, B. J. (1998). "Population biology and antipredator defenses of the shallow-water Antarctic nudibranch Tritoniella belli". Marine Biology. 132 (2): 259–265. doi:10.1007/s002270050391.
McClintock, James B. & Baker, Bill J. (1997). "Palatability and chemical defense of eggs, embryos and larvae of shallow-water antarctic marine invertebrates" (PDF). Marine Ecology Progress Series. 154: 121–131. doi:10.3354/meps154121.

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[1] Appeltans, Ward (2019). "Tritoniella Eliot, 1907". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 16 September 2019.

[WoRMS-2] Appeltans, Ward (2019). "Tritoniella belli Eliot, 1907". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 16 September 2019.

[Rudman-3] Rudman, W.B (1999). "Tritoniella belli Eliot, 1907". Sea Slug Forum. Retrieved 17 September 2019.

[Bryan-4] Bryan, P. J.; McClintock, J. B. & Baker, B. J. (1998). "Population biology and antipredator defenses of the shallow-water Antarctic nudibranch Tritoniella belli". Marine Biology. 132 (2): 259–265. doi:10.1007/s002270050391.

[5] McClintock, James B. & Baker, Bill J. (1997). "Palatability and chemical defense of eggs, embryos and larvae of shallow-water antarctic marine invertebrates" (PDF). Marine Ecology Progress Series. 154: 121–131. doi:10.3354/meps154121.