Sakuraeolis marhe Fernández-Simón & Moles, 2023

MORPHOLOGY

Body bright orange, or slightly paler; tail milky white. Upper half of oral tentacles and upper third of rhinophores and cerata milky white, opaque, or slightly translucent. Rhinophores and oral tentacles conical, smooth. Cerata in four horseshoeshaped clusters, first one in front of pericardium, slightly separated from the rest; four per
cluster side, innermost longer, with upper third white; sometimes elongated cnidosacs seen by transparency. Propodial tentacles conical, tentaculiform, directed posteriorly.

DISTRIBUTION

Only known from the Maldives (this study) and the Philippines.

ETYMOLOGY

This species is named in apposition after the MaRHE Center and staff, for the logistics and their help assisting in the field.

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References

• Facelina sp. 8, Terrence Gosliner, Ángel Valdés and David Behrens. (2018). Nudibranch and Sea Slug Identification Indo-Pacific 2nd Edition. New World Pubns Inc.
• Sakuraeolis marhe n. sp., Cunha, T. J.; Fernández-Simón, J.; Petrula, M.; Giribet, G.; Moles, J. (2023). Photographic Checklist, DNA Barcoding, and New Species of Sea Slugs and Snails from the Faafu Atoll, Maldives (Gastropoda: Heterobranchia and Vetigastropoda). Diversity. 15(2): 219., available online at https://doi.org/10.3390/d15020219