Bornella
| Bornellidae | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Bornella stellifer | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| (unranked): | clade Heterobranchia clade Euthyneura |
| Superfamily: | Tritonioidea |
| Family: | Bornellidae |
| Genus: | Bornella Gray, 1850 |
| Species | |
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Bornella is a genus of sea slugs, specifically aeolidiform nudibranchs in the family Bornellidae. This is a monophyletic genus.
There has not been much research on this genus. Their biology is mostly unknown, except that they seem to feed exclusively on hydroids.
Distribution
These nudibranchs occur in the Indo-West Pacific. In addition there is one species in the tropical eastern Pacific, and one species in the western Atlantic.
Description
Their body is covered with cerata-like dorsal and lateral outgrowths, with finger-like branches. They have an attached cluster of gills. Their rounded head shows on each side of the mouth a tentacle, with tiny finger-like papillae. The sheath of the rhinophore stands high and resembles the dorsal processes. Feeds on hydroids.
The various species differ in their color pattern and their number of dorsal and lateral outgrowths and the number of branches on their rhinophore sheath.
Anatomy
These nudibranchs are characterized by an unpaired oral gland.
In their genital system, the male duct is separate from the female duct.
Species
Species within this genus include:
- Bornella stellifer (Adams and Reeve in Adams, 1848) (synonyms : Bornella hancockana Kelaart, 1859 , Bornella arborescens Pease, 1871 , Bornella caledonica Crosse, 1875 , Bornella marmorata Collingwood, 1881 )
- Bornella calcarata Mörch, 1863
- Bornella excepta Bergh, 1884
- Bornella simplex Eliot, 1904
- Bornella hermanni Angas, 1864 (synonym : Bornella. japonica Baba, 1949 )
- Bornella sarape Bertsch, 1980.
- Bornella anguilla Johnson, 1984
- Bornella irvingi Edmunds and Preece, 1996
- Bornella dotoides sp. nov.
- Bornella pele sp. nov.
- Bornella valdae sp. nov.
- Bornella johnsonorum sp. nov.
- B. semperi Crosse 1875 (nomen nudum)
References
- Pola, M., Rudman, W. B. & Gosliner, T. M. (2009) Systematics and preliminary phylogeny of Bornellidae (Mollusca: Nudibranchia: Dendronotina) based on morphological characters with description of four new species. Zootaxa, 1975, 1-57
- Rudman, W.B., 2009 (Jan 27) A revision of the genus Bornella. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from Sea Slug Forum