Noumea norba

Noumea norba
Noumea 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:	Noumea
Species:	N. norba
Binomial name
Noumea norba Marcus & Marcus, 1970

Noumea 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

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. ^ WoRMS, World Register of Marine Species
2. ^ Noumea norba, Sea Slug Forum.
3. ^ Noumea norba food source, Sea Slug Forum.

Further reading

External links

• Noumea norba on Sea Slug Forum
• Noumea norba on Nudipixel