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Additional Photos
side
pale
dark
rhinophores
feeding
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Phyllidia polkadotsa Brunckhorst, 1993
Maximum size: 25 mm
(Brunckhorst, 1993).
Identification:
This
species
ranges from reddish-orange to yellow in Hawaii. There
are numerous large, black spots on the notum. The notum also possesses
small, simple, evenly distributed tubercles and three low, median
longitudinal ridges. The rhinophores are the same color as the mantle.
Natural history:
On
Maui,
Phyllidia polkadotsa
is a rare species that we haven't personally seen. However, it appears
to be more common at exposed to highly exposed sites on Oahu and Kauai
where it has
been
found under ledges and in caves from 5-23 m (16-75 ft). Scott Johnson
also
brought one
up in a shelling dredge from about 70 m (230 ft). It probably feeds on an orange encrusting sponge.
Distribution:
Big Island, Maui, Oahu, Molokai and Midway: widely distributed in the western &
central
Pacific, also in the eastern Indian ocean.
Taxonomic notes:
This
species
is listed as the "yellow-black Phyllidia"
in Bertsch and Johnson,
1981. It was first recorded in Hawaii off the Waianae coast of Oahu by
Scott
Johnson and is referred to as the "polka-dot Phyllidia" in Hoover, 1998
& 2006.
Photo: Scott
Johnson: Makua, Oahu: Sept. 19, 1979.
Observations and comments:
Note
1: ( )
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