Nudibranch

Description:

This is another interesting spotting of 2 different specie although both of the same genus; Chromodoris. The top Nudibranch with orange color is C.magnifica whereas the bottom Nudibranch with blue color is C.willani. The picture shows both of them courting/fighting and then eventually mating. Nudibranchs are hermaphroditic, and thus have a set of reproductive organs for both sexes, but they cannot fertilize themselves.

Habitat:

Tropical reefs, mostly in the shallows up to 30 meters

Notes:

Nudibranchs have been observed to 'fight' prior to mating. There were some beliefs that this could be to determine which one will be the Male and which one will be the Female during the mating process. This could be due to the belief that the loser then become the 'female', and has to lay the fertilized eggs. To do this, she will have to find and consume more food whereas the winner (male) can move on and mate with other Nudibranch.