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GALLERY



 
Goniobranchus decorus
(Pease, 1860)
 
Goniobranchus decorus
Maximum size:  20 mm.

Identification:  This species can vary in pattern but can usually be identified by its translucent body with a white median line that bifurcates midway along the notum to form a "Y" that circles around the gills. Another white line forms a loop around the median line. There is a marginal orange band and the notum is decorated with large purple spots. Mantle glands can often be seen around the margin beneath the orange border. The rhinophores are cream shading to light brown in older animals. The branchia are cream shading to white.

Natural history:  Goniobranchus decorus is a common species although it is seldom seen due to its small size and nocturnal habits. It may be found in tide pools and from the low intertidal to 10 m (32 ft) on protected to exposed rocky bottoms. It feeds primarily on a thin, black sponge. Its egg mass is pale orange and each egg is associated with a small cap of dark orange extra-capsular yolk.

Distribution:  Big Island, Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Niihau, French Frigate Shoals, Midway and Kure (also Johnston Atoll): widely distributed in the western and central Pacific.

Taxonomic notes:  This species is listed as Chromodoris decora (corrected in 2019 printing) and referred to as the "decorated nudibranch" in Hoover, 1998 & 2006. It's also listed as C. decora in Bertsch & Johnson, 1981, Kay, 1979 and Kay & Young, 1969. It was first reported from Hawaii in Pease, 1860 (as Doris decora). The name means "pleasing."

Photo:  PF: Maalaea Bay, Maui; July 12, 2024.

Observations and comments:

Note 1:  ( )
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