Zoological Studies
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Phestilla fuscostriata (J. T. Hu, Y. J. Zhang, J. Y. Xie & J.-W. Qiu, 2020)
You really have to look very closely to spot the predatory night snail Phestilla fuscostriata on its host, the stony coral Pavona decussata, as it has adapted almost perfectly to Pavona decussata in terms of body shape / body structure and color.
Another masterpiece of nature!
Phestilla fuscostriata has a white body with brown pigmentation on the back and cerata, which perfectly mimics the color of its host coral.
The brown pigmentation comes from the color of the cells of the symbiotic algae Cladocpium sp. which it has ingested and not digested.
The adults lay crescent-shaped, light-colored egg masses on the coral surface,
The closest related species is Phestilla viei, also a predatory nudibranch (host is the coral Pavona explanulata) from the Gulf of Thailand.
Geographic distribution:
Phestilla fuscostriata is currently known from eastern Hong Kong waters including the type locality of Sharp Island and Chek Chau (in Hong Kong. Given the wide distribution of its host coral Pavona decussata in the Indo-Pacific region, including Hong Kong, it is expected that more records will be made in the future, especially along the northern coasts of the South China Sea.
Note:
Also in 2020, a first find report of Phestilla fuscostriata v was made from the Singapore Strait, Sisters Islands Marine Park, eastern reef of Small Sister Island, see Appendix.
Citation:
Hu J. Zhang Y, Xie JY, Qiu JW. 2020.
A new species of predatory nudibranch (Gastropoda: Trinchesiidae) of the coral Pavona decussata.
Zool Stud 59:30. doi:10.6620/ZS.2020.59-30.
© 2020 Academia Sinica, Taiwan. Open Access
Synonymised names
Tenellia fuscostriata (J. T. Hu, Y. J. Zhang, J. Y. Xie & J.-W. Qiu, 2020) · alternative representation (controversed genus allocation)
You really have to look very closely to spot the predatory night snail Phestilla fuscostriata on its host, the stony coral Pavona decussata, as it has adapted almost perfectly to Pavona decussata in terms of body shape / body structure and color.
Another masterpiece of nature!
Phestilla fuscostriata has a white body with brown pigmentation on the back and cerata, which perfectly mimics the color of its host coral.
The brown pigmentation comes from the color of the cells of the symbiotic algae Cladocpium sp. which it has ingested and not digested.
The adults lay crescent-shaped, light-colored egg masses on the coral surface,
The closest related species is Phestilla viei, also a predatory nudibranch (host is the coral Pavona explanulata) from the Gulf of Thailand.
Geographic distribution:
Phestilla fuscostriata is currently known from eastern Hong Kong waters including the type locality of Sharp Island and Chek Chau (in Hong Kong. Given the wide distribution of its host coral Pavona decussata in the Indo-Pacific region, including Hong Kong, it is expected that more records will be made in the future, especially along the northern coasts of the South China Sea.
Note:
Also in 2020, a first find report of Phestilla fuscostriata v was made from the Singapore Strait, Sisters Islands Marine Park, eastern reef of Small Sister Island, see Appendix.
Citation:
Hu J. Zhang Y, Xie JY, Qiu JW. 2020.
A new species of predatory nudibranch (Gastropoda: Trinchesiidae) of the coral Pavona decussata.
Zool Stud 59:30. doi:10.6620/ZS.2020.59-30.
© 2020 Academia Sinica, Taiwan. Open Access
Synonymised names
Tenellia fuscostriata (J. T. Hu, Y. J. Zhang, J. Y. Xie & J.-W. Qiu, 2020) · alternative representation (controversed genus allocation)
