Micromelo barbarae Feliciano, Malaquias, Stout, Brenzinger, Gosliner & Á. Valdés, 2021
- Location
- Nazumado, Hachijo Island, Tokyo, Japan
- Date
- 2018/05/15
- Length
- 15mm
- Depth
- 12.0m
- Water temperature
- 23.0℃
Description
A small aplustrid with a thin, ovoid cream-white shell bearing three brown spiral bands with finer wavy vertical lines between them. Diagnostic features include a yellow mantle margin, a black marking on the protoconch, and a shell apex that extends slightly beyond the posterior end of the aperture. The soft body is translucent white, scattered with widely spaced white patches. Shell length to about 30 mm.Distribution
Tropical and subtropical western Pacific. The holotype (NMP – 041297) is from the Balanoy dive site (13.6864°N, 120.8912°E), Calumpan Peninsula, Mabini, Batangas, Luzon, Philippines, collected 4 April 2016 by T. Gosliner. A Japanese paratype (ZMBN 106876, isolate KF128) is recorded from Hachijō-jima, Japan. Before the 2021 revision, populations of this species were treated as part of M. undatus.Etymology
The species is named in honour of Barbara Weller, grandmother of the first author (Kendall Feliciano), "for inspiring her love of marine science and genetics from a young age and in appreciation for funding her first year of graduate school tuition." Described by Feliciano, Malaquias, Stout, Brenzinger, Gosliner & Valdés in 2021 as a new species in the M. undatus complex.Japanese vernacular name
The Japanese name Watayuki-shibori-gai ("cotton-snow shibori shell") references the cotton-like, widely-falling snowflakes (watayuki) that the shell's pale markings evoke.Remarks
Like other aplustrids, the species is a specialised predator on cirratulid polychaete worms.References
- コンシボリガイ, 奥谷喬司. (2000). 日本近海産貝類図鑑. 東海大学出版会.
- コンシボリガイ, 中野理枝. (2004). 本州のウミウシ. ラトルズ.
- コンシボリガイ, 小野篤司. (2004). 沖縄のウミウシ. ラトルズ.
- コンシボリガイ, 小野篤司 & 加藤昌一. (2009). ウミウシ. 誠文堂新光社.
- Micromelo undatus, Terrence Gosliner, Ángel Valdés and David Behrens. (2015). Nudibranch and Sea Slug Identification Indo-Pacific. New World Pubns Inc.
- コンシボリガイ, 中野理枝. (2018). 日本のウミウシ. 文一総合出版.
- Micromelo undatus, Terrence Gosliner, Ángel Valdés and David Behrens. (2018). Nudibranch and Sea Slug Identification Indo-Pacific 2nd Edition. New World Pubns Inc.
- コンシボリガイ, 小野篤司 & 加藤昌一. (2020). 新版 ウミウシ. 誠文堂新光社.
- Micromelo undatus, Micromelo guamensis, Micromelo scriptus, Micromelo barbarae n.sp., Feliciano, K., Malaquias, M.A.E., Stout, C., Brenzinger, B., Gosliner, T.M. & Valdés, Á. (2021). Molecular and morphological analyses reveal pseudocryptic diversity in Micromelo undatus (Bruguière, 1792) (Gastropoda: Heterobranchia: Aplustridae). Systematics and Biodiversity. DOI: 10.1080/14772000.2021.1939458: 1-25.
- ワタユキシボリガイ（新称）, 西田和記. (2024). ウミウシの生態観察図鑑. 誠文堂新光社.
Featured in this book
Terrence Gosliner, Ángel Valdés and David Behrens. (2018). Nudibranch and Sea Slug Identification Indo-Pacific 2nd Edition. New World Pubns Inc.
New World Publications
This species, Micromelo barbarae, is included in the book.
View on Amazon PR (Amazon Associates)Seasonality
Shooting Locations
Loading shooting locations...
Photos of Micromelo barbarae
Tag:
Same Genus Nudibranchs
Academic Database
Sea slug observation data is available in international marine biodiversity databases.