Feathered doto

feathered doto
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Heterobranchia clade Euthyneura clade Nudipleura clade Nudibranchia clade Dexiarchia clade Cladobranchia clade Dendronotida
Superfamily:	Tritonioidea
Family:	Dotidae
Genus:	Doto
Species:	D. pinnatifida
Binomial name
Doto pinnatifida (Montagu, 1804)
Synonyms
Tritonia pinnatifida

The feathered doto, Doto pinnatifida, is a species of dendronotid nudibranch, and is found off South Africa, the United Kingdom and France. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Dotidae.

Distribution

This species is found in the north Atlantic Ocean off the United Kingdom and France. Around the South African coast it is found from the Atlantic coast to Knysna. It is known from the intertidal to 30 m.^[1]

Description

The feathered doto is a small (up to 30mm) pale-bodied nudibranch, with darkly mottled nodular clusters of cerata extending in pairs down the body. The rhinophores extend from cup-like sheaths.^[2] May be confused with the crowned doto, Doto coronata, but the cerata of this species are more elongated and less grape-bunch-like than those of the crowned doto.

Ecology

The feathered doto feeds on hydroids. Small coiled white egg masses are often laid on hydroids.

References

1. ^ GOSLINER, T.M. 1987. Nudibranchs of Southern Africa ISBN 0-930118-13-8
2. ^ ZSILAVECZ, G. 2007. Nudibranchs of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay. ISBN 0-620-38054-3

External links