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Hooded Nudibranch

Melibe leonina

Description:

This amazing Nudibranch is also known as Lion's mane nudibranch, it is a species of predatory sea slug, specifically a nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Tethydidae.

Habitat:

Found on eelgrass and other seaweeds near low tide and below, and in kelp forest in deeper water.

Notes:

They are carnivorous and hunts for food, while attached to grasses, by extending its oral hood out and downward like a net. When the ventral surface of the hood contacts a small animal, the hood rapidly closes and the fringing tentacles overlap, holding in the prey then forcing the whole animal into the mouth. Prey include amphipods, copepods, mysids, other small crustaceans, small mollusks, small jellyfish and ctenophores, larvae of other invertebrates and in some cases small fish.

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43 Comments (1–25)

Arya
Arya 10 years ago

Thanks Maria and Adarsha.

Maria dB
Maria dB 10 years ago

Congratulations; very cool spotting!

Adarsha B S
Adarsha B S 10 years ago

Congratulations Arya! Lovely..

Arya
Arya 10 years ago

Thank you Luis. It's a fascinating creature and I'm lucky to have gotten SOTD. There were some amazing spottings the last few days!

LuisStevens
LuisStevens 10 years ago

Congrats Arya! Wonderful SOTD!

Arya
Arya 10 years ago

Thanks Carol and Scott. Scott thanks for moving it to other for me! Wasn't sure.

Scott Frazier
Scott Frazier 10 years ago

Congratulations on a great Spotting of the Day! (I moved your spotting from fish to the "other" category.)

Carol Snow Milne
Carol Snow Milne 10 years ago

This is very amazing. Congratulations on Spot of the Day!

Arya
Arya 10 years ago

Thanks all! António, I agree, nudibranchs do come in amazing colors, patterns, and shapes!

intrinsic3141
intrinsic3141 10 years ago

Great spotting! I have to research more about these interesting and bizarre creatures.

Chamalka Dulmini
Chamalka Dulmini 10 years ago

Amazing........congratulations Arya

dotun55
dotun55 10 years ago

Unusual marine organism!

Great capture Arya,very cool organism,nudibranchs are amazing in collours and in shapes,like this gorgeous one,congrats on the SOTD and thanks for sharing

Arya
Arya 10 years ago

Thank you all for the kind comments. Especially all those who I have been meeting these last few weeks. and Nathan, thanks for the ID!

Nathan Rowe
Nathan Rowe 10 years ago

Great to see this got spotting of the day. :)

Leuba Ridgway
Leuba Ridgway 10 years ago

Great spotting, Arya. A well deserved SOTD - Congratulations ! Also, thanks for the information.

Saumya Wanniarachchi
Saumya Wanniarachchi 10 years ago

Congratulations ! Amazing spotting ! :)

Tiz
Tiz 10 years ago

Arya, congratulations, it is very unique! :)

Reza Hashemizadeh
Reza Hashemizadeh 10 years ago

Congratulations !

Tom15
Tom15 10 years ago

Congrats on this amazing spotting!

Bhagya Herath
Bhagya Herath 10 years ago

wow!!!! great spotting congratulations Arya .....

Dilan Chathuranga
Dilan Chathuranga 10 years ago

Congrats Arya!!!

Blogie
Blogie 10 years ago

Congrats on your spotting!

I'd like to invite you to join the Mollusca mission and submit your nudibranch (and other mollusk) spottings there.

LaurenZarate
LaurenZarate 10 years ago

Beautiful and interesting!

Josh Asel
Josh Asel 10 years ago

What a crazy animal. Thanks for the description and congratulations!

Arya
Spotted by
Arya

Edmonds, Washington, USA

Spotted on Nov 9, 2013
Submitted on Nov 10, 2013

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